Love Hurts
by mi55sin
Summary: Kotonoha Katsura was separated from her childhood friend... and he comes back to her. When things turn for the worse, can he save her? Rated M for possible language and sexual themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Author Notes:** I'm still relatively new to using the options on so my apologies if things seem out of order. I edited some sentences to make sure my story pacing is smoother.

Chapter One: Beginnings

_Two children were playing in the sandbox, laughing as they built a sand castle together. One was a girl with long, black - violet hair with big brown eyes, wearing a light blue skirt and a yellow tank top. The other was a boy with silver, short hair with bangs that hung over his deep, green, emerald - colored eyes; he wore a white tee-shirt and blue denim jeans._

"_Hey, Ryuu-chan …. What are we making?" The little girl asked._

"_A sand castle, of course ….as big as possible …." The boy grinned mischievously._

"_Ryuu-chan, I heard from my mommy that you're leaving with your daddy…. Is it true?"_

_The boy showed a pained expression on his face as he replied, "….yes it's true…"_

"_But I don't want you… to leave Ryuu-chan…; can't you stay here with me?"_

"_I-" The little boy started to reply but was interrupted by someone who was familiar to him._

_A young man – in his teens, wearing a black tux came over, bent down and said, "Ryuuji-sama, it's time to leave now… we wouldn't want Hyouma-sama to wait any longer." _

_Crestfallen, the little boy got up, dusted himself and started to walk out of the sand box. "I have to go now…. See ya Ko-chan"_

_Little tears came down on Ko-chan's face as she waved, "goodbye Ryuu-chan," she whispered. _

Kotonoha woke up with dried tears in her eyes. The dream felt so real yet her current circumstances would prove them otherwise. She considered herself a normal high school girl who went to school and tried to make new friends, but there was one aspect of her that separated her from the other girls: her fear of men. Boys scared her and she avoided them like the plague, she couldn't bear to be near them much less strike a conversation with them; yet, somehow she was the sole object of their attention. Her slender figure, complimented by long, black hair and a blossoming chest made her the target of every girl's envy and every boy's dream. She wanted to make friends but she was shy and being the girl that every guy wanted to be with didn't help either, it just made her an enemy of all the girls.

As Kotonoha quickly got dressed, she noticed the time; if she didn't hurry, she would miss her train and as class president she couldn't be late…

Makoto had his usual headphones on but was deep in thought shown with his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes closed. He thought about the time he met HER. A long, black haired beauty who wore his school's uniform and rode the same train. She was beautiful the moment he first laid his eyes on her and ever since then, she occupied his thoughts. The train stopped moving abruptly and Makoto opened his eyes, the girl he was just thinking about just got on and took her usual seat but still in plain view.

He started fidgeting and making awkward movements. _She's here! What can I do to make her notice me? Argh…. think hard Makoto!_ He could never gather up the courage to greet her even though he saw her every morning. He just didn't know how to approach her or to start up a conversation with her. _Damn… I just lost my chance. Why can't I get the courage to talk to her?_

How could he get the girl to notice him? Every day was the same routine, he would see her get on the train and then admire her from afar but this time it was slightly different. He took a picture of her on his cell phone and set it as his wallpaper, hoping the rumors were true.

Everyone in high school knew about the myth and everyone talked about it. _If someone takes a picture of someone they love on their cell phone and display it as their wallpaper for three weeks without anyone noticing, then those two people will get together and start dating._

**XXX**

When class was over, Makoto carefully took out his cell phone and admired the picture he took. A big sigh escaped his lips. Just as he was about to put it away, it was snatched out of his hands from a short, brown haired girl, someone he knew too well. She was never seen with a frown on her face and her cheerful demeanor allowed her to make friends with anyone. She wore her brown mid-length hair down, with bangs framing her childish brown eyes.

"Who's this, Makoto? Is she your girlfriend?" The girl's eyes twinkled with mischief as she asked him.

"Oh it's you Sekai….

Another sigh escaped from Makoto's lips.

"It's none of your business…can I have my phone back?" His voice was laced with concern, worried about what she would do once she found out…

Makoto felt a headache coming on because of Sekai's sudden interest. She would never back off until she satisfied her curiosity. He thought he should be used to her strange behaviors by now, since they were childhood friends, but then again, she always surprised him.

"Heeeeh…. You like the girl in this picture don't you? I think I saw her in school…. Do you want me to get some information for you?"

Sekai said in a teasing tone, knowing well that Makoto never had the courage to ask a girl out much less a confession.

"Wait… Sekai… Did you say that she goes to this school?" Makoto's hopes brightened, maybe he will finally get a girlfriend and a beautiful one with that!

"Yes… I'm sure she goes to this school…. There's no way I could forget a face like this."

"Then can you get me some information on her? Please?" Makoto pressed his hands together and bowed his head.

"Ok... leave it to me! But you owe me one… for this favor." Sekai grinned, thinking that Makoto owed her big time.

**XXX**

Makoto was sitting on a bench at the rooftop of the school eating his lunch when suddenly he couldn't see.

"Guess who?" Sekai giggled, as she covered Makoto's eyes with her hands, hunched over the bench he was sitting on.

"Um…..Sekai?" Makoto blurted the only one he knew that would do this to him.

"Ding-ding! You got it right!" Sekai released her hands and Makoto's visual sight returned.

Makoto turned around and Sekai was there, with a smile goofy smile on her face as if she accomplished the impossible. Suddenly, Sekai thrust out her cell phone in his face and grinned.

"TA-DAA! I'm friends with Katsura-san now! Phone number and email address get!" Sekai then sat down on the bench beside him and leaned over slightly so that they were just barely touching, using Makoto as her support. It was only natural that she had no qualms being this close to him; they were after all, childhood friends….

She started to fill him in on some other things…

"I also found out that Katsura-san doesn't have a boyfriend yet which means you still have a chance, but I also heard that her father is really strict…." Sekai hopped off the bench with her cell phone still in her hand which she placed close to her chin as she recited what she heard about Kotonoha to him.

As he listened, Makoto slouched and his expression darkened. "If that's the case then…I won't say anything and keep it to myself. That way we can still stay friends and-"

It was barely a murmur but it caught Makoto's notice. "Are you an idiot?" Makoto lifted his head to the sound of her voice and as soon as he did….

Sekai Saionji leaned forward and slapped Makoto forcefully on the cheek. The force of it wasn't enough to bruise but it was more than enough to make him wince in pain.

"Huh?" Makoto froze and his right hand reached slowly to feel his cheek if it was still there.

"HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO HOLD YOUR HAND THROUGH THIS?" Sekai was furious.

"Wh—What are you…?" Makoto was confused. _Why is she mad?_

"Just so you know…Your dreams will never come true if you just sit around wishing for them."

THAT got Makoto's attention and his expression changed. But it was too late and Sekai was running away from him. She reached the door which led to the stairs, opened it abruptly and left.

**XXX**

"Saionji…!" Sekai stopped and turned around at the bottom of the stairs. Makoto was running down the stairs after her and stopped halfway just as he caught her attention. He said nothing but his gaze was now firm and focused.

The two shared a mutual understanding.

Just by looking at the way he held his gaze told her that he could go for it, nothing could stop him now. She stuck out her fist with a smile on her face and said, "Move forward! Makoto the Great can do anything he sets his mind to!"

Makoto nodded. _Tomorrow…I'll confess to Kotonoha…_

**XXX**

The next day was Makoto's opportunity to confess yet it seemed like he was set up by Sekai.

Where was she?

Makoto was sitting on the bench with Kotonoha and Sekai was nowhere to be seen. _Sekai…you…_

"….I got a message from Saionji-san that said…" Kotonoha started but then noticed that Makoto wasn't paying attention to her.

"Itou-kun?"

Makoto was flustered. "Ah, yeah. S…sorry it's nothing!" He couldn't stop blushing and the fact that his heart was beating rapidly didn't help either. He clapped his hands together and made up his mind. He had to say it; he wouldn't get a better chance than this. He licked his lips and began to speak.

"Uh…you know, after school, I was wondering if you wanted to go to Sakakino. You said you liked books, so I was thinking we could check out the bookstores, and then go to Sakakino hills…H-How about it?"

Makoto was surprised at how calm he sounded. _That wasn't so bad…_

"That sounds like a good idea." Kotonoha didn't think there was any meaning behind it.

"Really!"

"Oh…but Saionji-san…she said that she had some errands after school…"

Makoto took a step further and gathered his courage. "I meant…just the two of us…" He turned to face her and looked adamantly into her beautiful purple eyes.

Kotonoha blushed at his sudden attention to her and looked away. "You mean like…a… date?"

"…you don't want to?" Makoto looked disappointed and got the feeling that he was going to be rejected.

"…is it… really okay with just me?" Kotonoha replied, wondering if she was good enough to be alone with him.

Makoto jumped out of his seat and stood up. "OF COURSE, IT IS!"

"AH!" Kotonoha was surprised that Makoto felt so strongly about this.

"Katsura….san…I love you…please… go out with me." Makoto said it like he meant it, hoping to convince her that he truly cared for her.

….

Kotonoha thought over his words for a moment. He seemed gentle, much different from other boys she had seen and he seemed sincere with his feelings. She wanted to change, to get over her fear of men and this was a great chance to start. Besides, Kotonoha secretly liked him too. After much consideration, Kotonoha decided to take a risk. She nodded her head meekly in agreement.

"…Okay." Kotonoha's cheeks were still pink as she smiled timidly.

"!" Makoto had a big smile on his face. He couldn't believe it, she accepted. He was going on a date with the girl he's been crushing on since school started. He couldn't hide his excitement on his face but he managed to compose himself and sit back down, enjoying the rest of his lunch with Kotonoha.

**XXX**

Sekai was walking with Makoto to the train station. They both lived in the same direction and took the same train. During the entire time, Makoto's thoughts were in the clouds and he had a big goofy smile on his face.

She noticed Makoto's good mood and was glad that things worked out between him and Katsura-san.

"Mission complete? Well…I already knew how Katsura-san felt already."

"WHAT! And I was so nervous about it too…" Once they reached the train station, Makoto sat down on a nearby bench with his head hung low and his shoulders hunched over. It looked like he was finally relaxing after a long journey.

Sekai stood in front of him as they continued their conversation.

"You confessed to her on your own so now the feeling is mutual."

"That smack to the face really helped. Seriously, thanks." Makoto smiled as he continued. "I wouldn't be here without you, Sekai. You've helped me so much. Nothing I could do would ever be enough to pay you back."

"Whoa, slow down there." Sekai turned away from him to check if her train was coming.

"I'm just kidding!" Makoto raised his hands up as if she was going to punch him but he noticed that she turned away from him.

"But I do want to pay you back." He laced his hands together as he continued.

"Really? Well…then, what should I ask for?" Sekai turned and faced him. Makoto didn't notice since he pulled out his cell phone and glanced at the time.

"Take your time and think about it carefully. The train's coming."

Sekai dropped her bag which alerted Makoto's attention, grabbed him by the shoulders and leaned forward.

They kissed.

The kiss lasted several seconds… maybe even a minute. Makoto dropped his cell phone.

He was shocked.

As Sekai pulled back from the kiss, she knew she couldn't take it back. She wasn't worried if this would change their relationship. She got what she wanted.

"This should cover it…" Sekai whispered as she pulled away and picked up her bag. Makoto was at a loss for words.

Sekai ran towards the opening doors of the train, turned around and said, "GOOD LUCK ON YOUR DATE!" It took a few moments for Makoto to regain his senses. But by the time he got up, the doors of the train closed and he saw her turn away from him in the window. His eyebrows furrowed in thought, his fingers instinctively touched his lips. The heat from their brief contact still lingered.

_Saionji….you…._ Makoto gazed towards the direction of the train and was completely confused. He didn't know how he felt towards Saionji, but he didn't have time to think about it. He had to focus on the date with Kotonoha…

**XXX**

Two days after the date, Makoto and Sekai were laughing together during school at lunchtime. The kiss they shared briefly before Makoto started dating Kotonoha was long forgotten. It was as if it had never happened. They were conversing normally until it led to the discussion of the date that Makoto had with Kotonoha at Sakakino hills. There was nothing they couldn't share with each other. They continued their conversation as they walked down the corridors.

Sekai casually spoke first. "So…? How did the date go?"

Makoto let out a sigh. "…Whenever I saw Katsura-san, I got really nervous…I'd like to at least be able to call her by her first name…"

They stopped at the vending machines near the stairway.

Sekai sighed and shrugged with her palms in the air. "Good grief….How are you going to get any further like this?"

Makoto looked clueless. "Get further…?" _Does she mean…?_

Sekai was surprised that he didn't know what he meant. It should be something that all adolescent boys thought about. "Eh! Y-You know…" Hiding her embarrassment, Sekai turned away from him and crossed her arms. "D-Doing all kinds of things!"

"You mean like…" Makoto let his head hit the nearest wall to hide his face. He couldn't help blushing. He imagined Kotonoha in a helpless pose with just her undergarments on asking him to be gentle with her. He tried to calm down, convincing himself that Kotonoha would never act like that.

"Ah, Itou-kun." Kotonoha called out to Makoto, hoping that they could have lunch together. However, she didn't notice that Makoto had his back to her, trying to compose himself. "Is something wrong?"

"Hahaha… Ka-Katsura-san. Thanks for the message last night. Sounds like your first date went well." Sekai whispered to Kotonoha at one side, giving Makoto some time to calm his nerves and settle down.

"…yes." Kotonoha gently replied, blushing with a smile. She looked sincerely happy about her first date.

While they were on the topic of the date, Sekai imitated Makoto words, "I'll do the best I can even though I'm inexperienced." Kotonoha laughed, it was more or less one of the reasons why she liked Makoto.

Nearby, Makoto noticed that Sekai made fun of him and he wanted to say something to his defense. "S-shut up Sekai."

Kotonoha was surprised. _Itou-kun_ _hasn't called me by my first name yet and we're going out. How close are you two?_ Only close friends or couples would call each other by their first names. Makoto and Kotonoha were dating, but they still called each other by their last names, making Kotonoha uneasy about their newly created relationship.

Kotonoha felt jealous of Sekai's relationship with Makoto even though he told her that they were just childhood friends. Sekai, sensing the awkward situation, hurried both Makoto and Kotonoha to the rooftop so they could eat their lunch like they usually do. "Ah! I have to go now… I arranged to eat lunch with my friends…. See you two lovebirds later!"

**XXX**

As they were eating lunch together, no one said anything. Makoto was so nervous he wanted to say something but he couldn't. His heart couldn't stop hammering into his chest and his palms were sweaty. _U-uh oh, if this continues, it's just going to be like our date two days ago. I-I need to say something._

"T-two days ago, it was fun." Makoto felt awkward.

"Eh? Ah y-yes!" Kotonoha was nervous as well. _Should I say something else?_

…..

They then started talking about the place they went for their first date: Sakakino Hills. The atmosphere was still awkward but at least they started talking. They agreed to go there again and then Kotonoha brought up another topic.

"I-Itou-kun, you really seem to get along well with Saionji-san." Kotonoha was nervous again. _Almost too well…_

"What…?" Makoto wondered where this was going. _Me and Sekai? We're just childhood friends…_

"Just now you-" _How should I explain this to him? I want him to reassure me that he likes me._

"Ohh that, Sekai just likes to make fun of me." Makoto waived it off, unaware that he was using Sekai's first name again.

…..

Makoto did it again. _Why can't you see that I'm not comfortable with you calling another girl by her first name? Makoto, you're an idiot._

"Um, well….could you also…call me…" Kotonoha tensed up with her hands on her knees. _Just ask him to do the same for you. It's okay. We're dating._

"Um….um…" Kotonoha was flustered. _Just ask him._

"Hm...? What?" Makoto wondered what she wanted to ask.

She had his full attention and was about to pose the question when suddenly Makoto jerked and clutched at the cell phone in his pocket.

"Someone texted me? Gimme a second." Makoto pulled out his cell phone.

The text he got was from Sekai, asking him if they were doing anything naughty. He sighed internally. _She's really just… But oh well. She helped me…I guess._

"It was from Sekai." Makoto put on an apologetic look as he closed his cell phone and place it back in his front pocket.

Kotonoha sighed. "I-I see…" _I lost my chance._

Makoto had no idea of how Kotonoha felt every time he mentioned Sekai. "She's such a pest… So anyway, what were you saying?"

"N-nothing…!" Kotonoha couldn't ask now. She felt miserable, even when they were alone together. Makoto always brought up his friend, Sekai, into the conversation. He didn't know that Kotonoha felt uneasy about his relationship with her, but she couldn't tell him. She didn't want to sound like a clingy girlfriend when they were in the first stages of their relationship.

Kotonoha stood up quickly and gave up on her request, suggesting that they should both to return to their respective classes soon. Makoto noticed her odd behavior and wondered why she was acting a little strange.

Was it because of something he said? He hesitated to ask but the opportunity never came up. He nodded in agreement as they said their good-byes and went their separate ways.

After they departed to their separate classes, Kotonoha sighed. _Why do I feel like being in a relationship is so difficult? Being with Makoto-kun makes me nervous and I can never really tell him how I feel. Are all relationships like this? I wish there was someone I could ask about these things._ She had never been in a relationship so she didn't know what to do, but she was sure that she liked Makoto and wanted to be closer to him. She hoped that Makoto felt the same.

The ending school bell rang.

School ended and Makoto was worried about Kotonoha's earlier behavior, he wanted to know what she hesitated to ask but he didn't want to be too pushy… especially in his relationship and it was with Kotonoha no less.

They were the same. They were both new to relationships and it was a blessing as well as a curse. Makoto never knew what to say or what to do and Kotonoha was the same; they both felt nervous around each other and it caused rifts in their relationship.

Hence, the reason for their current predicament; like most guys, Makoto was unaware that becoming too familiar with a girl other than his girlfriend made his girlfriend worry about their relationship. Moreover, Kotonoha was unlike other girls because of her fear of men, she needed security in her relationship more so than others.

Makoto's obliviousness didn't help.

He pulled out his ipod and wanted to immerse himself in music to drown out his worries, but it was out of batteries. _…Katsura-san… What was she trying to say…? I need to find out… But she said that she has a student council meeting._ He sighed and pulled out his cell phone and dialed the first name that came to mind. _…What other choice do I have?_ _Maybe Sekai will know…_

Sekai was at a burger place with her friends; they were hanging out and gossiping when Sekai's phone rang. When she answered, Makoto started a conversation with her easily and she even invited him to come, but she thought he was with Kotonoha.

However, Sekai could tell something was wrong just by the tone of his voice, he usually wasn't like this. She guessed that he was worried about his relationship with Kotonoha and gave him some advice. She told him that unless they talked to each other, the relationship would fall apart.

Makoto got the message, thanked her and hung up. _Geez, Makoto what would you do without me? I wish I could tell you how I felt about you but now it's too late. Good luck with Katsura-san._

The student council meeting ended and Kotonoha was heading out of school. She was about ready to leave when Makoto found her.

He was gasping and out of breath. "Huff…. puff…K-Katsura-san….lets walk home together."

"Wait, did you come back for me?...you're sweating…."

"Yeah…Let's go home together." Makoto was catching his breath. Kotonoha offered a handkerchief but he didn't need it.

She was surprised.

Makoto caught his breath. He looked serious. "I just need a minute. I want to talk to you…"

Kotonoha didn't know how to reply.

"Ah, but of course you don't have to…if you don't want to…" Makoto looked away. _I don't want to force her…_

"Ah… Okay! Let's go home together!" Kotonoha couldn't help smiling, she was so happy. _Oh Makoto, you are so kind. I wasn't wrong when I accepted to be your girlfriend. No one had ever walked home with me._

As they were walking back home together, they started talking again.

"What! That's what made you come back?" Kotonoha was surprised.

"Y…yeah…" Makoto blushed and rubbed his hair.

"…that's sweet…" Kotonoha's face was a tad crimson. _Makoto is so cute._

…..

Makoto noticed she stopped walking and turned back to look at her.

"Uh, well…what I was trying to say at lunch was…" She began.

"Ah…yeah…" She had his full attention.

Kotonoha gripped her school bag tightly. _Just say it!_

"ITOU-KUN, I WANT YOU TO CALL ME BY MY FIRST NAME…" She did it. She finally got it out.

Makoto was touched. "Huh…?"

"It looks like you and Saionji-san get along really well… You even call each other by your first names… so… could you…" She looked really timid, like a small animal. She glanced up at him.

"…is that… a no?"

"Haha, sure I'll call you by your first name." _We were both thinking the same exact thing._

"But you do the same for me!" Makoto wanted her to know that he had similar feelings.

"Okay!" Kotonoha had tears in her eyes. She didn't know such a minor thing could make her so happy.

Makoto looked around to make sure that there was no one nearby. He tried calling his girlfriend by her name.

"Then…Kotonoha."

"Y-yes! Makoto-kun!" She replied cheerfully.

They both were beet red, not used to using first names with each other.

"It-it's kind of embarrassing somehow."

"Y…yeah."

They both laughed it off as they headed off to the nearest train station.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Visitor

_Two children were playing in the sandbox, laughing as they built a sand castle together. One was a girl with long, black - violet hair with big brown eyes, wearing a light blue skirt and a yellow tank top. The other was a boy with silver, short hair with bangs that hung over his deep, green, emerald - colored eyes; he wore a white tee-shirt and blue denim jeans._

"_Hey, Ryuu-chan …. What are we making?" The little girl asked._

"_A sand castle, of course ….as big as possible …." The boy grinned mischievously._

"_Ryuu-chan, I heard from my mommy that you're leaving with your daddy…. Is it true?"_

_The boy showed a pained expression on his face as he replied, "….yes it's true…"_

"_But I don't want you… to leave Ryuu-chan…; can't you stay here with me?"_

"_I-" The little boy started to reply but was interrupted by someone who was familiar to him._

_A young man – in his teens, wearing a black tux came over, bent down and said, "Ryuuji-sama, it's time to leave now… we wouldn't want Hyouma-sama to wait any longer." _

_Crestfallen, the little boy got up, dusted himself and started to walk out of the sand box. "I have to go now…. See ya Ko-chan"_

_Little tears came down on Ko-chan's face as she waved goodbye, "goodbye Ryuu-chan," she whispered. _

Kotonoha woke up again from the same dream with tears in her eyes. She had the same dream for about a week now and always woke up from it in tears. She shrugged it off, thinking it was just a coincidence. Her duties as class president kept her busy and her relationship with Makoto was steadily coming along.

She didn't have time to it about it.

She got dressed in her school uniform and headed down the stairs. Her family was well off compared to the other people in the neighborhood and her home was beautiful. It had two floors, four bedrooms, two bathrooms and a spacious patio with a front gate. Her parents worked hard to make sure she lived well, but sometimes it was a little bit lonely when it was just her and her younger sister, Kokoro.

Her father was the first one to greet her. He was just telling her mother that a guest was coming today to stay with them for the time being. He wanted to let Kotonoha know so that she would be prepared since Kokoro already knew. But Kotonoha was heading out the door and there was no time. She quickly grabbed a bite to eat, her lunch on the kitchen counter and left the house.

He sighed. He hoped that he would have a chance to tell her. The guest was the son of a long time acquaintance of his and previously lived next door. Several years ago, an accident happened and they moved away but he had the feeling that they would meet again. Tomorrow, he and his wife would leave on a business trip again, but at least this time, he was sure his daughters would at least have someone to watch over them.

**XXX**

Kotonoha arrived at school on time like usual and she noticed Makoto. She wanted to wave to him but was interrupted when he turned his head towards Sekai. She waved in his direction and did her usual greeting. Feeling slightly disappointed, she hung her head low, but then shook her head vigorously. _Think positive! It's not what you think!_

Kotonoha cheered herself up, she understood that Sekai and Makoto were just friends and she shouldn't let their relationship bother her. _It's okay. They're just friends. Nothing to worry about, besides Saionji-san was the one who got us together._

She walked up to them and greeted them both with a smile. The first bell rang and class was about to begin so they separated again to their respective classes, but arranged to meet up during lunch.

She took her seat in front of the classroom in class 1-4. She stood up again as her teacher entered. It was her duty to lead the class and greet the teacher with a bow. Once everyone was seated, the teacher greeted everyone in return.

"Good morning class. Today's schedule will be a little different today. We have a new student coming in; he just transferred in from abroad."

The teacher turned to the door.

"Come on in and introduce yourself, Hyouma-kun."

A young man stepped inside the classroom holding his school bag over one shoulder. The first thing everyone in the class noticed was his hair….

He had silver hair that reached down to the nape of his neck and emerald-green eyes that burned with an internal fire. When he turned to face the class, they noticed that even though he wasn't very muscular, he radiated an internal strength that couldn't be measured by outward appearances. He wore the same school uniform: a two button black blazer with a white shirt underneath and black slacks, but he left out the red tie and his blazer unbuttoned with his white shirt showing.

He looked foreign to the other students and they noticed it immediately. From the moment they saw him, they started gossiping about his origins. They also noticed that his outward appearance made him look like a delinquent. His uniform wasn't complete and the collar of his white shirt stuck out, he looked nothing like a model student.

He was here for only two reasons: to visit a close family and to oversee his father's work, nothing else. He wasn't here to make friends.

Or at least he thought so.

"Thank you teacher." The young man kept his voice neutral but it held respect; he was used to an adult environment and it clearly showed.

"Everyone, this is Ryuuji Hyouma and he will be a student in this class starting today. Due to some family circumstances, he is attending this school. Feel free to ask him for advice since he has already achieved the prestigious M.B.A. degree in America." The teacher didn't hesitate to point out Ryuuji's greatness but everyone was surprised that this rough-looking young man actually completed his education when they expected him to just stir trouble.

_Great…now everyone knows. I'm only here as a cover…but wait…is that Ko-chan? She's in this class as well? It's been what – at least 10 years since I've seen her? She's still so beautiful._ Ryuuji quickly glanced at her, noticing her shyness and the distance she kept between her and other students. _Well…people do change over time._

"Is there anything else you would like to add Hyouma-kun?" The teacher started to write his name on the chalkboard.

Ryuuji made a formal bow as it was custom in his native culture and said calmly, "I'm looking forward to working with everyone."

The class applauded in response.

While standing next to him, the teacher called out to Kotonoha. "Katsura-san, could you please stand up? Thank you."

"Hyouma-kun, you will be sitting four seats behind her. Oh and Katsura-san…as class president…could you show Hyouma-kun around campus?"

Kotonoha nodded, this was just one of the duties of being class president. _I hope Makoto-kun and Saionji-san won't mind that I'm going to be late for lunch._

Ryuuji started to walk down the aisles towards her direction. He gave her a quick nod, acknowledging her and sat down in his seat. _She didn't recognize me? I guess it's been too long…Ko-chan. I promised to come back to see you but I guess I didn't need to worry. You look like you're doing well. I'll just keep to myself then, protecting you just as I did when we were kids._

Kotonoha sat down in her seat as the teacher proceeded with the lecture. She noticed that the transfer student gave her a quick nod, expecting a similar greeting in return. _Does he know me? Or is he just being friendly because I'm the class president?_ She was confused and didn't respond back. Boys were strange to her and besides her interaction with Makoto; she wanted to avoid the attention of others, not wanting to stir trouble.

**XXX**

The class ended and the teacher excused them for lunch.

Ryuuji stifled a yawned and stretched. He barely paid attention in class but felt like he didn't need to since he had already obtained a master's degree. He had to admit being in high school was relaxing; he enjoyed looking out the window and admiring the scenery. _Father wants me to be here so I'll attend but it's not like I'll learn anything new. He said that the experience would be a "good thing" but so far, besides having Ko-chan in my class nothing else is interesting._

Being in school was a just a cover for him, no one was suppose to know that Juda Corporations was overseen by a young chief executive officer. Juda had many rivals and it was one of the many branch companies that his father owned, but this one was important. That is why Ryuuji was here, to protect Juda Corporations which in turn would help his father's company. No one would suspect that a young high school student would be in charge, it was the perfect cover.

If none of the rival companies knew then they had no power to do anything, no one would get hurt. Besides, Ryuuji wasn't the type to make friends anyway so there was no one who could get hurt by being involved with him.

After stretching, Ryuuji glanced around. No one wanted to make eye contact with him. The girls admired his appearance from afar but were scared to approach him. In contrast, the guys avoided his gaze, thinking he was nothing but trouble. _That's fine with me. I will just enjoy my peaceful school life. All this thinking made me hungry… where can I get lunch? Wasn't Ko-chan suppose to show me around?_

He stood up and walked towards the front of the classroom where Kotonoha, still in her seat, was putting away her class materials and taking out her lunch. As she got up she noticed that her desk was surrounded by Otome and her friends. Otome was a school athlete and had a trio of friends who followed her around. She had brown haired that was always tied up in a ponytail. Although from afar, it looked like she had a quiet demeanor, her true personality was actually the opposite. She was usually authoritative to her peers, especially towards Kotonoha and tolerated no one's opinion but her own.

This was just another day for Otome to flex her authority towards the meek class president of class 1-4.

It irritated her to think that Makoto was going out with her like the rumors said, she had a crush on Makoto and to think Kotonoha beat her to it gave her more than enough reason to bully her.

What was so special about her?

Every boy had their eyes on her, because of the way she looked, she was more developed than other girls her age and it clearly showed. Otome was misled to think that Kotonoha wanted all this attention because she never defended herself against wandering gazes or perverted stares; she thought it was a rouse that she was shy in order to get more attention.

Kotonoha never wanted this attention and it only got worse when she didn't do anything about it. She couldn't. She was shy and usually avoided contact with people. How could she stand up for herself? All this attention has only brought her trouble and constant bullying. No one would come to her defense and since Makoto was in a different classroom, he couldn't protect her. He didn't know about the bullying anyway, she kept it to herself and endured it every day.

She could see that Otome had no intention of letting her off easily today. She sighed internally as Otome started to speak.

"Good afternoon, Class President… Are you heading off to lunch with your boyfriend?" Kotonoha nodded meekly.

"Well… you see…sensei asked me to pass out some handouts after school but I have something right after school so is it alright for you to do it for me?"

Kotonoha knew quite well that these favors were clearly intentional but she couldn't refuse and no one in class would help.

"Um… well… didn't I help you last time Katou-san?" _And every time before that as well…._

Otome's response was her palms slamming on Kotonoha's desk. "You wouldn't want me to be angry… do you Class President?" Her trio of companions snickered at the way Kotonoha seemed to shrink in fear of Otome.

The abrupt gesture frightened Kotonoha.

Otome had no intention of letting Kotonoha get away without obeying her… She wanted to make sure that the class president knew she was helpless in front of her. The class president was just a little servant of the teacher's and nothing more. She didn't have any real authority.

As Ryuuji approached Kotonoha's desk, he could see she was occupied. _Are they bullying her? I should protect her like I've always have. I can't make it too obvious though, Ko-chan doesn't know me after all…_

"Hey… you guys are blocking the way; bullying someone when you clearly have the advantage is unladylike. But then again, girls like you probably don't care because you can't get any boyfriends anyways."

Otome looked around first, trying to locate the source of the voice.

"Who dares to interrupt-?"

She froze for a moment when she saw where that voice was coming from. _It's the transfer student…he looks like he could kill someone right now… What's up with him? Is he just arrogant or trying to be a hero?_

Her followers turned to face Otome when they noticed she was speechless. They looked for the reason. Ryuuji's silver haired seemed to fade away in the background while emphasizing the intensity of his gaze. His emerald green eyes were intensely focused on them and the message was clear as day: he wasn't to be trifled with.

After a moment's pause, Otome was the first to speak up again but not as quite confident as she was earlier.

"H-Hey t-transfer student… it's none of your business so butt out. W-We're asking the class president a favor."

"Huh? It doesn't look like you're asking kindly… and besides on what obligations does the class president have to you anyways? I'm asking **kindly**…Get out of my way, I have some business with her."

Otome and her friends backed off, he looked like he meant it and they didn't want any trouble.

Defeated they left the room, muttering incomprehensible words. Otome glanced back for a moment and cursed at her bad luck. _This isn't over. I'm going to get you for this._

"Pff… guess they were all bark and no bite… Are you alright, class president? I thought Japanese girls were suppose to graceful unlike those in America…guess I was wrong."

Ryuuji crossed his arms and shrugged, "I can't believe how many guys were ogling at them earlier."

Kotonoha couldn't believe it, Otome and her friends left without bullying her.

This was a first.

Even more strange was the fact that a boy stood up for her, she thought that besides Makoto there was no other like him. _But he's a boy… Don't be afraid. He just saved you. Thank him._ She couldn't help it, every boy made her uneasy. She couldn't trust them, only Makoto.

"Eh? No, I-I'm fine… um…H-Hyouma-kun right? T-Thank you very much for earlier… You didn't have to stand up for me…This happens quite frequently and I'm used to it…" She hung her head low ashamed for what happened earlier. It wasn't something that she should get used to.

_She was used to this? What had happened to her when he was gone?_ Ryuuji couldn't help being irritated.

"Class President… Are you an IDIOT? Who just stands there and does what others ask them to do without thinking for themselves? You should defend for yourself!"

He called her an idiot? She expected him to do something more drastic like berating her for being slow or helpless.

"Eh? Yes… you're right… I might be an idiot for listening to others all the time…" She kept her head low again and clutched her lunch box.

"If you can't defend for yourself….I'll defend you." Ryuuji kept it to a murmur, hoping she didn't hear. "Anyway, aren't you suppose to show me around? I only need to know one place…. I'm hungry, where's the cafeteria?"

"Eh? What did you say? The cafeteria? It's this way, follow me." Kotonoha was sure he said something else but couldn't hear it so she dismissed it and led him to the cafeteria. _He seems kind enough, although he has a somewhat rough exterior._

After she led him to the school cafeteria, she excused herself. She was going to be late meeting up with Makoto if she didn't hurry.

"I'm sorry Hyouma-kun, I have to leave you now. I'm meeting someone for lunch so please excuse me."

Kotonoha left Ryuuji at the cafeteria and hurried towards the rooftop where Sekai and Makoto were meeting her for lunch. Usually it would be just the two of them, but she felt bad leaving Sekai out so she told Makoto that she didn't mind Sekai joining them. Makoto assured her and it would be better to leave her out since she caused trouble but appreciated her generosity. It was now a usual routine to see them both on the rooftop for lunch.

_I guess she's meeting her boyfriend for lunch…hmm…I should find out who he is…He's lucky to have her, I hope he knows that. Time for lunch!_ Ryuuji bought some sandwiches, a bag of chips and some iced tea. He ate quickly to ensure that he still had time left over to gather information. He was protective of Kotonoha and wanted to make sure she wouldn't get hurt. Not mentally nor physically.

Ryuuji left the cafeteria and wandered around. _I said I was going to get information but where and how? No one is willing to approach me much less talk to me._ He told himself that he would postpone the task until later when suddenly a shout interrupted his thoughts.

"H-hey, stop it! Take it easy!" Taisuke was up against the wall nearby cornered by Otome and her friends. She had a firm grip on his collar with one hand a fist raised to punch him.

Ryuuji was amused by the current scene. He approached closer to watch out the situation play out by the tall, brown haired male and the girl ring-leader that he scared off earlier.

"Well? Are you going to answer me?" The fist was clenched tightly and ready to strike.

"A-answer what?" Taisuke tried to play innocent; his hands were up in mercy. With his back slouched against the wall, he was much shorter than Otome and it just emphasized her authority at the moment….

"Why do you have indecent pictures of Katsura-san and what are you planning to do with them?" Otome glared at him, this was another reason why she hated Kotonoha; she represented the wrong impression of girls.

"Ah well, my sources are secret but I was planning on giving them to my best friend, Makoto, as a congratulation gift for getting together with Katsura-san." _The lucky bastard…_

Taisuke couldn't believe that Makoto is going out with Kotonoha, he thought that they didn't go well together but he wanted to congratulate them. Besides, he shouldn't keep photos of his best friend's girlfriend anyways.

"WHAT? KATSURA-SAN IS GOING OUT WITH ITOU-KUN? WHAT THE HELL? THAT'S JUST A RUMOR!" The fist came down and struck Taisuke in the face. It was red and getting ready to swell up; her punches were not light at all. She had another fist ready to strike again. _It's just a rumor. There's no way Itou-kun would go out with her. _

Ryuuji was curious. Why would Otome care about who Kotonoha's going out with? Unless… it was the guy she was gunning for. _I didn't think I could get some information this way. _

He grinned, at least now he had a name. He could work from there.

"P-please stop!"

She didn't look like she would. Taisuke looked around for help. He looked to the side and saw a tough looking guy with silver hair.

"Please help me!" Taisuke begged.

Ryuuji was uninterested. He had no reason to.

…

"P-please help me! I-I'll do anything to return the favor!" He sounded desperate.

_Anything? He might be useful._ Ryuuji was about to make a decision when Otome turned around and focused her attention on **him**. She released Taisuke's collar abruptly and turned around.

"Well, look who's here. I still owe you for what you did in the classroom." Otome scowled. _He is going to pay for butting-in._

Ryuuji shrugged his shoulders casually.

"I don't recall doing anything. I'm harmless." Otome started walking towards him.

"At least I don't have to ask you to release him."

They now stood face to face, almost. Ryuuji was about a half a foot taller than her and it infuriated her. It looked as if he was looking down on her. She pulled back and quickly swung her fist at him. Ryuuji moved forward, dodged the fist and ripped out the bow off her uniform. Otome regained her posture and was about to hit again when Ryuuji showed her the red bow.

_When did he?_ She gasped. This was a warning, he was faster and so he instead of hitting her, he ripped the bow.

"I believe this belongs to you." Ryuuji threw the bow back to her. _That was too easy._

"Che…Let's go. I've lost interest." Otome knew she couldn't beat him; she also couldn't risk causing a commotion since she was a member of the girls' basketball team.

_Well that's settled. It's time to go._ He turned to leave.

"Wait!" Taisuke got up slowly; he wasn't going to let the guy leave until he returned the favor.

"What?"

"Let me return the favor. I owe you man. Thanks." He grinned, holding his hand out for a shake.

"I didn't mean to save you. She just lost interest in you at the moment. Besides, I don't like to associate myself with guys with disgusting hobbies." Ryuuji ignored his hand. _Be thankful, I didn't beat you up for having pictures of Ko-chan in her underwear._

"Dude, that's harsh. But still, I want to return the favor. Man, if it weren't for Makoto and his girlfriend I wouldn't be in this mess." Taisuke scratched his head.

Ryuuji hesitated before walking away. _Makoto again, who the hell is he? What's his relationship to Ko-chan? That girl has her eye on him too._

"Who is he?" He tried to sound uninterested.

"Huh? You mean Makoto? He's my close friend since junior high and currently he's dating the black, haired beauty of class 1-4: Kotonoha Katsura. Well…it's not official yet so no one knows, but I overhead Sekai asking Makoto about the progress of their relationship so that's how I found out." He shrugged, thinking that Ryuuji wouldn't be interested.

_It's not official? Well knowing how timid Ko-chan is now, she wouldn't be willing to reveal that information to just anyone. But still, that Makoto guy, if he truly cared for her, he should make his intentions clear so that other girls would get the message. Especially, __**that**__ girl._

Ryuuji was deep in thought and his expression bothered Taisuke. He looked serious with his eyebrows scrunched down and his gaze focused.

"Hey, what's the matter? You have something against Makoto? He's a good guy. Well… for the time I have known him. Oh, I forgot to ask your name. I'm Taisuke Sawanaga. You?"

"Ryuuji Hyouma. I just transferred into class 1-4."

"Oh you're a lucky guy! You're in the same class as Katsura-san. What do you think of her-?"

Ryuuji started to walk away since Taisuke started rambling about how beautiful Kotonoha was, what her hobbies were, etc. _At least I got the information I wanted. If I get the chance, I'll have a "chat" with this Makoto guy. _

"Hey! Where are you going?" _Geez, so cold. He could at least say good-bye. He's seems cool… but dangerous too, didn't think I would meet a guy like him._

**XXX**

Once Kotonoha reached the rooftop she could tell that Makoto and Sekai were already there. She heard their voices and saw that they were having fun without her. Makoto was in Sekai's arm-lock and he was trying to scarf food from her lunch box.

"THAT'S MINE!" Sekai was clearly playing around with Makoto-kun.

"Haha! C'mon, I'm starving here!" Makoto replied, not noticing how close he and Sekai were just from this little scuffle.

"You're starving huh!" Both of Sekai's arms were around Makoto's neck and she was pretending to choke him.

"C'mon. Hahaha." Makoto looked so intimate with Saionji-san.

_Makoto-kun…you talk about everything with Saionji-san… I guess Makoto-kun and Saionji-san really are close. He's never like that with me. Maybe, Makoto-kun shouldn't be with someone like me. Someone like Saionji-san is much more his type._

"Ah, Katsura-san! You're late! Sekai raised her arm in greeting to Kotonoha, cheerful as usual.

"Ah… Sorry for being late. I was instructed to show a transfer student around the school by sensei and I didn't notice that I was late meeting up with you guys for lunch."

"Oh… Hey. That's okay I had a feeling that you were held up by something." Makoto replied, feeling nervous around her.

Kotonoha tried to converse normally with him, but it was always short conversations. When Sekai comes into the conversation, it goes off on a tangent and Makoto starts laughing, ignoring the fact Kotonoha is beside him.

She sighed internally._ I'm just not good with people. I envy Saionji-san, she can talk normally to anyone, but all I have is Makoto-kun._

She kept quiet the whole time and ate her lunch. She wished that she could jump into a conversation as easily as Sekai but they were talking about things she had no interest in.

This was a frequent occurrence but she didn't know what to do about it. She didn't want to ruin their relationship yet she was still uncomfortable with Makoto's intimacy with Sekai. As Kotonoha sighed again, lunch ended.

School ended two hours later and Kotonoha got ready to attend the student council meeting. She told Makoto earlier that day that he could leave without her. She felt bad asking him to stay afterschool to wait for her every time so she did it as little as possible. Today was one of those days and Makoto wanted to hang out with Sekai anyways.

She left the room and minutes later, Ryuuji's cell phone vibrated. _Who's calling me? They're right on schedule to avoid calling me during school._ He flipped it open.

"Hello? This is Ryuuji."

"Good afternoon, Ryuuji-sama. This is Kei, I have message from your father about living arrangements…" Kei was Ryuuji's right hand man; he was loyal, trustworthy and did mostly the arrangements for him. He's been with him since he was young.

Ryuuji was uninterested. "Go on, Kei."

"Yes… you will be living with the Katsura family for the time being until circumstances change. Your luggage will be there when you arrive at your convenience and your father wants you express his greetings to Seiichiro Katsura, who is a long time friend of his. That is all. Feel free to contact me if anything comes up, Ryuuji-sama… Good-bye and have a nice day."

"Thanks Kei and good-bye."

Ryuuji couldn't help grinning to himself. _Looks like I will get stay with Ko-chan a little more longer… I wonder if she knows? Anyway might as well wait for her since I will be living with her. I don't trust her walking alone although she might have done it often enough to disprove me otherwise._ He got up and left his seat. He decided that he should find out where the student council meeting was held. When he was in school, he was never involved with student council, because he was always occupied with classes and work but he had to admit it sparked his curiosity.

Kotonoha was in another student council meeting. They occurred usually three times a week but since the student festival was coming up, they had to decide many things including budgets and security.

She sighed.

At times like these she wished she could switch places with Sekai. Sekai didn't have any activities afterschool but she did have a part-time job as a waitress in a family restaurant.

After a long discussion and a brief debate over class budgets for the festival, the meeting concluded and the members were thanked for attending. Kotonoha gathered her belongings and proceeded out the door.

Ryuuji managed to find where the meeting was held only after it concluded. He assumed that all the students exiting out of a single room were the ones attending the meeting; Kotonoha was one of them. _As class president, Ko-chan takes her job seriously huh? Good for you Ko-chan. Thanks for all the hard work._ He started to follow her, but making sure he kept some distance apart.

Kotonoha changed her shoes, walked out of the school building and headed towards the train station. _It's been a long day… I wonder what Makoto is doing now._

Several minutes passed. She could sense that she was being followed. She clutched her school bag firmly and sped up her pace. _Is it a stalker? A pervert? Should I turn around?_

Ryuuji walked casually behind Kotonoha and noticed that she picked up her pace. _Did she notice that I was following her? But if I don't keep up I'll lose her._ He walked faster, trying to follow her pace.

Several more minutes passed as she attempted to lose her follower. _I can't lead this person back to my house! But what should I do? I know I'll try to scare him away! Here goes!_ Kotonoha clutched her school bag, turned around and swung her bag at the person behind her.

"Oof…that hurt." Ryuuji got smacked in the face with her school bag.

"EH? W-why is it you, Hyouma-kun? I-I thought that you were a stalker or something." She was surprised that he was following her.

….

"Sorry for scaring you, class president. But I need to walk to the nearest train station. I believe it is in the same direction that you are heading…. I didn't mean to scare you so I purposely walked further behind you but I guess that had the opposite effect."

_Well if I was a stalker, a punch from a school bag wouldn't deter me Ko-chan. Sorry for scaring you._ He rubbed his cheek where the bag hit him. It didn't hurt that much but he wanted to make sure that it wasn't swollen.

"S-sorry Hyouma-kun. Does it hurt?" _That was why he followed me? At least he's not a scary person, I thought he would at least yell at me for hurting him but I guess he just looks scary._

"I'm fine. Thanks for asking." He didn't mean to sound abrupt but it obviously bothered her that he was around her. She seemed uncomfortable around him, and it wasn't just him but he noticed that she was like this with all boys. _Does she have a fear of men? That might explain why she stutters a bit when she talks to me._

He started walking again, but this time in front of her. Kotonoha wanted to walk beside him, but settled with walking behind him. _Is he mad? I'm sorry Hyouma-kun, but boys make me uncomfortable._

_Geez Ko-chan. Are you that afraid of me? I don't know where the train station is so I need you to lead!_ He slowed down his pace enough that she caught up with him. As soon as she did, he followed her pace and walked alongside her.

_Oh my god! He's walking beside me! What should I do? I'm so nervous, it feels the same when I'm walking beside Makoto-kun but I don't want to act rude._ She became so nervous that she started gripping her school bag more tightly. He noticed it immediately.

"Hey, I'm sorry for walking beside you since you hate boys but I don't know where the nearest train station is so I'm following you. I get the feeling that you hate being around me, so just bear it until we reach the station okay?"

_He noticed? Well it's not like I hate him, but boys make me nervous and I'm still just getting used to talking to Makoto-kun. He's the only boy I've started interacting with._ Kotonoha couldn't help feeling sorry for the way she treated him.

…..

She couldn't tell him that. How could she? It was rude for her to judge him based on other men, yet she couldn't help it. The men she knew were lecherous, deceiving, and arrogant; her own father was the exception, she knew he cared about her and so he was strict with her. Besides, she was uninterested in learning more about men; she had little contact with them anyway. As for her boyfriend, she did her best to do the little things couples would normally do. For Makoto, she put in her best effort and hoped that he would understand that this was difficult for her.

As they walked further, she noticed that Ryuuji kept to himself. He didn't try to start a conversation with her nor did he try to make her like him. He was walking beside her at her pace, not complaining that she was either too slow or too fast just simply walking and nothing else. _I thought he would be more intimidating, was I wrong?_

They arrived at the train station. She assumed he was taking a different train so she walked to her stop thinking that he was no longer following her.

She was wrong.

He stood next to her, following her lead and staying silent.

_Maybe he lives in the same city as me?_ Kotonoha said nothing and got on the train.

Ryuuji got on the same train as well, following Kotonoha. _Heh…so this is what trains look like in Japan. They don't look that much different from the ones in America._ Ryuuji was born in Japan but had to move to the United States with his father. They left when he was young so he didn't remember much of Japanese culture, but his father encouraged him to study it. He did so diligently but studying the culture was much different than living in it.

During the entire ride, Kotonoha noticed that Ryuuji kept his distance since he knew that she was uneasy around him. He still remained silent and kept to himself.

The people around her weren't as quiet though. A few girls from another high school were giggling and whispering among themselves about the silver-haired guy in the train. She guessed they were talking about Ryuuji, but she didn't agree with some of the things they said.

They said he was handsome and she had to admit that Ryuuji was the only one she knew who possessed silver hair, but did that mean he was handsome? Did the way his hair glittered in the sunlight make him handsome? She was baffled.

_As if I could be interested in girls who just admire my looks…Hmph. Look all you want. I don't care._ _There are always girls like them, those who only care about how a guy looks._ Ryuuji ignored them. He knew he looked foreign here and it sometimes attracted unnecessary attention. He didn't care.

Kotonoha got off the train and headed home, and Ryuuji followed suit. As soon as she arrived at her house, she noticed that Ryuuji stopped as well. Why is he still here?

"U-um…Hyouma-kun where exactly do you live? T-this is my house…" She didn't want to sound impolite but he did follow her the whole time.

"Ah sorry. Did I mention I'm living here starting today?" Ryuuji had to tell her now otherwise she would get the wrong impression of him.

"EH?" _Wait… didn't my father try telling me something this morning? I was in a hurry so I didn't hear…_ Kotonoha was surprised. A boy was living with them? When did her father agreed to this? _Guess I'll find out soon._

"C…Come on in…" Kotonoha nervously gestured.

The moment Kotonoha opened the door….someone small with short pig-tails jumped out and shouted, "WELCOME HOME ONEE-CHAN!"

Kokoro was Kotonoha's younger sister and her personality was the complete opposite. She was excessively overactive and it showed.

She jumped into Kotonoha's arms and nudged her face into Kotonoha's chest. "Hmm…ONEE-CHAN!" Kokoro kept rubbing her face making Kotonoha blush furiously.

"K-kokoro…s-stop that! We have a guest!"

_A sister? Guess she was born after I left…it's been too long since I've been here._ Ryuuji had been inside Kotonoha's home before when they were young. They were next door neighbors and he frequently visited. The house didn't change much from the last time he was here, not that he could remember much.

"…Is this your sister? Hi Kokoro-chan, I'm -"

He was cut off when Kokoro blurted. "..AH! ARE YOU ONEE-CHAN'S BOYFRIEND!"

He smiled sadly. "No. I'm not." He tried to make his voice sound neutral and succeeded but his smile betrayed him. Fortunately, it went unnoticed.

"K-Kokoro! H-He's not my boyfriend… he's just a classmate…" Kotonoha couldn't stop stammering, she could feel her face heating up. She couldn't help telling her family about her boyfriend so everyone knew about it but how could Kokoro mistake Ryuuji for Makoto? She explicitly told them how he looked and Ryuuji looked nothing like Makoto.

"Well… C'mon, C'mon, Come in!" Kokoro didn't hesitate to grab Ryuuji's arm and lead him to the living room.

As Ryuuji was being led into the living room, he noticed they were not alone. Kotonoha's mother was in the kitchen preparing dinner and her father was at the dining table reading the daily news when he saw who was coming in. He stood up quickly as he recognized him and greeted the young man.

"Ryuuji-kun! It's good to see you all grown up. How have you've been? I'm sorry that my daughter Kokoro is too energetic…"

Kotonoha's father greeted Ryuuji, warmly as if he was his long lost son.

"No…it's fine. My father misses you and hopes that you are doing well." Ryuuji shook his hand firmly in return and took a seat at the dining table.

Kotonoha decided to step into the conversation for a little bit.

"Um… father… why are you here? I thought you were going on a business trip? Did your plans change?"

She didn't mean to interrupt but usually her parents were away from home. This was a rare occasion. _It seems like father knows Hyouma-kun very well. He is also friendly towards him too. Who are you, Hyouma-kun?_

Her father didn't tolerate the fact that she was dating while in high school. He thought that she was still too young and was worried that boys would date her because of her wealthy background. In time, he would find a suitable man for her to date, but he prohibited her from seeing her so-called boyfriend. His wife wouldn't hear of it though and he had to rescind his decision.

"Ah! Kotonoha, I see you brought him here… I hope that wasn't too much trouble. I thought it was best for you to get to know him since your mother and I am leaving again; I trust him to accompany both you and Kokoro while I'm gone."

Kotonoha was flabbergasted. "B-But father… you want H-Hyouma-kun to live with us? Isn't that unseemly? A girl and a boy living under the same roof without supervision…"

"Well…that's usually the case but I trust Ryuuji-kun. He's a fine man and he's lived with us in the past even if you don't remember. There's no one else I would trust to take care of you two." Kotonoha's father made his decision and there was no way out of it.

Ryuuji sensed Kotonoha's uneasiness. "Uncle…. My stay here might make Katsura-san uncomfortable… I'll stay here as limited as possible."

"No need for formalities, Ryuuji-kun! Stay here as long as you like! Your father and I are long time acquaintances and I can't let you feel unwelcomed… Kotonoha will understand; no need to worry."

"You can have the guest room. My wife prepared it for you ahead of time."

Ryuuji lowered his head in thanks. _If it was this much trouble why did father arrange me to live here? Arghh! I'm bothering them!_

"You didn't have to Mrs. Katsura…I can sleep anywhere."

Kotonoha's mother, who was busying making dinner turned around.

"Oh my, Ryuuji-kun why are you so formal? Just call me, Auntie, like you used to when you were little…you were so cute back then but now you have grown into a handsome young man…it's just too bad that Kotonoha has a boyfriend already…" Manami couldn't help chatting away and Kotonoha interrupted, embarrassed that her mother brought up the idea.

"M-Mother! I told you that I'm Makoto's girlfriend! Please do not give Hyouma-kun any weird ideas!"

Slightly amused, Ryuuji just watched the scene play out. _Ko-chan should act like this when she's at school, she would make more friends this way. The Ko-chan at school is too reserved._

"H-Hyouma-kun?" His thoughts were interrupted. He turned around.

Kotonoha gestured towards the stairs.

"I-I'll show you your room."

"Please do."

She led him up the stairs.

As soon as he settled in, she left. He gave a quick nod as thanks and looked at his room. It had the bare necessities: a desk with a chair, a closet, and a bed; that's all he needed. He saw that his luggage was brought in and placed in the corner just like Kei said they would.

"Thanks again, Katsura-san. I'll be fine now. I just need to unpack my clothes and my computer." Ryuuji walked over to the corner where his stuff was held and proceeded to unpack his clothes and his laptop.

Kotonoha left him to unpack his things and walked back downstairs to help her mother prepare dinner for their guest. _I can't believe that I never noticed mother preparing this room for a guest. I just thought that she wanted to do a little bit of cleaning up. Oh well, it's too late to do anything about it now._

Kokoro stayed behind to watch Ryuuji unpack his stuff. She was curious about him since her parents knew him from before. Usually her father was really strict towards any males that approached her older sister but he was the first exception. Not to mention that he looked foreign with his silver hair.

"…hey Ryuuji-niichan? Did you live here before? Daddy and mommy say they know you from before." She looked at him with curious eyes.

_Ryuuji-niichan? I guess she could call me that, whatever works for her._ As he was filling the closet with his clothes, he answered simply.

"I lived next door when I was around your age, Kokoro-chan, and I came by often. That's all."

"EH? Really? So that means that onee-chan and Ryuuji-niichan are childhood friends? How come onee-chan doesn't remember you? Kokoro was so excited. He could end up being the brother that she always wished for!

"I guess you could call us childhood friends but since I haven't been here the whole time, we're not really childhood friends. Besides, most people don't remember who they met when they were younger anyways. I don't hold it against her."

Ryuuji shrugged.

"But…I want onee-chan to have more friends…lately it seems like she's worried about something but she won't tell me what it is. Also, when I ask her about it she changes the topic to something else." Kokoro just stood in a corner and started voicing her concerns about her older sister even if Ryuuji wasn't listening. But he was.

_Worried? It could be her relationship with Makoto… I should look into it when I have the time. Thanks Kokoro-chan._ Ryuuji finished putting away his clothes and brought out his laptop onto the desk.

"…um Ryuuji-niichan…? I-I was wondering if you could be onee-chan's friend? It might help if she has one more friend to help her out. Please?" Kokoro had her small hands close to together, closed her eyes and bowed her head a little.

"I—" Ryuuji was about to answer when he was interrupted.

"Kokoro, Ryuuji-kun! Dinner is ready!" Voices came from downstairs, presumably belonging to Kotonoha's mother.

"Please Ryuuji-niichan? About being onee-chan's friend?" She was worried that Ryuuji would say no to her request.

"Let's head down for dinner. Come on, Kokoro-chan." He walked towards Kokoro and gently petted her head.

"Katsura-san will be fine. I'll make sure of that." Kokoro beamed at the response. It wasn't exactly the reply she wanted but somehow he lessened her fears.

….

Dinner looked like a feast. There were a multitude of dishes and everything looked delicious. Ryuuji and Kokoro took a seat at the table with the rest of the family. Kotonoha and her parents were already seated at the table. Food was being served around the table and Kotonoha's father started a conversation with Ryuuji.

"Everything was made my wife. I hope it suits your tastes, Ryuuji-kun. It's been awhile since you have tried my wife's cooking."

"You're too generous, Uncle. Auntie's cooking was always delicious."

This time, Kotonoha's mother joined in. "Oh my, Ryuuji-kun, you're too kind. Kotonoha's cooking is just as good. You should ask her to make meals for you."

"M-Mother! How can my cooking be compared to yours? Besides, I don't know if my cooking will suit Hyouma-kun's tastes." _Geez, what are mother and father thinking? It's like they have met the son of their dreams and they're trying to play matchmaker. They weren't like this when I mentioned Makoto._

"It's fine, Katsura-san. I can eat just about anything." Ryuuji didn't notice what Kotonoha's parents were trying to do.

"Ara? Ryuuji-kun why are you calling my daughter by her last name? Like your Uncle said, don't be so formal, we're all family here."

"M-Mother! I don't think Hyouma-kun and I are close enough that we can address each other by our first names! I mean, it took so long just for me to call my boyfriend by his first name…"

Kotonoha started to mumble quietly to herself. _How can I address Hyouma-kun by his first name when we've only met today? We're not that close and I don't want to be close to any man except Makoto!_

"Ah, sorry Auntie, I've gotten used to a formal environment so I couldn't help calling her Katsura-san but I guess it would be rude to treat her like an outsider. Like Uncle has said, we're family. Sorry about that…. Kotonoha." _I hope she understands that I just want to be friendly and nothing more. I know you already have a boyfriend Ko-chan and I won't interfere as long as you're happy with him. Sorry Ko-chan but it seems like I might have to interfere._

"Fine! Since we're family I guess I'll go along and address you as R-Ryuuji-kun." Kotonoha left it at that and started to eat.

Kokoro stayed quiet the entire time. It was amusing to watch her sister fight against calling Ryuuji-niichan by his first name. She was happy that there was another addition into the family even if it was for a short time. Her good mood was plainly obvious as she attacked the food in her plate.

Kotonoha's mother smiled and clapped her hands in recognition of her daughter's defeat. "Now that it's settled, let's eat!"

Everything else went smoothly that night. Ryuuji couldn't help but secretly thinking to himself that the image Kotonoha portrayed at home was so cute. _Too bad you're not like this at school, but then again, I'm happy that I'm the only one who gets to see you like this Ko-chan. Some things never change._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three – School Days

The next morning, Ryuuji woke up early like nothing has changed even though he was now living in Japan instead of America. He got dressed in his morning jog outfit and left the house. After working up a sweat he returned, took a shower and made breakfast. This was his usual routine in America since his father was too busy to take care of him and he lived on his own, annoyed by the concept of having servants at his beck and call.

He noticed that that there was a note on the kitchen counter listing the foods that Kotonoha and Kokoro liked to eat for him to keep in mind. _Hmm…I should make extra breakfast for them and then make bento boxes for lunch. No sense in buying cafeteria food again since I can make my own lunch._ He put on an apron and started to cook.

Once Ryuuji finished making everything and then packing it after he ate his breakfast, he turned on his laptop and checked the financial records of Juda Corporations that Kei sent to him last night. As chief executive officer, he had to make sure that inventories were accounted for, costs were minimized and profits were being made and as well as checking the records for any discrepancies. He typed up his findings and sent it to Kei to make sure that his orders were processed and forwarded to others.

Kotonoha woke up to the smell of breakfast. _I thought mother left on a trip with father. Who made breakfast?_ She got dressed and walked downstairs to the kitchen. She saw Ryuuji at his laptop and breakfast set on the table. _He made this?_

"G-Good morning, Ryuuji-kun. Did you make breakfast?" Even though they were living together, she still couldn't get used to him. _Because he's a guy._ She mentally noted.

"Good morning, Kotonoha. I guess you're still not used to me yet. But yes, I made breakfast and lunch is packed up for you at the countertop. I hope you like it." _I guess this Makoto guy will be the only guy Ko-chan can trust afterall. What did I hope for? I should be satisfied that I'm living with her even though it's only temporary._

"Looks delicious. Thank you very much, R-Ryuuji-kun." Kotonoha sat down and started to eat. She still wasn't used to calling him by his first name. _It's been awhile since I had an actual breakfast since I usually don't wake up early enough to make breakfast for myself and Kokoro._ She started with a sip of miso soup. _Mmm… delicious. For a guy, he's actually good at cooking, maybe as good as me. At least he can cook even if I can't tolerate him being here._

Ryuuji glanced over his laptop to take a quick look at Kotonoha. _Looks like she likes it. At least I know she likes my cooking even if she's afraid of being around me._ He went back to typing his work on his laptop. His eyes never leaving his laptop, Ryuuji casually spoke to Kotonoha as she was eating her breakfast.

"Oh right, before I forget. Kotonoha, I'm going to head out before you do so that no one will know I live with you. That way, rumors won't start and Itou-kun won't misunderstand." _Not that I care about the rumors but I don't want to stir trouble for Ko-chan._

"Eh? Ah right, thank you. Ryuuji-kun. I'll lock the door after Kokoro and I leave." Kotonoha didn't even think that people might misunderstand their relationship if they walked to school together. She thought that no one at school would notice her anyway, but lately, there has been rumors circulating about the foreign exchange student since he stood out. If she was seen with him, rumors might spread about her too.

Ryuuji checked the time and he decided he should leave for school. He turned off his laptop, put it away, grabbed his school bag and headed towards the door putting on his shoes.

"I'll leave first then. See you later Kotonoha."

"H-Have a safe trip."

Afterwards, Kotonoha left the house as well with Kokoro when they both finished breakfast. They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways; Kotonoha made sure Kokoro walked away with her classmates.

When Ryuuji arrived at school, nearby students couldn't help gossip stories about him since he accidently made himself infamous by opposing Otome's gang yesterday.

_Hmph. Gossip all you want. As long as I can protect Ko-chan from that girl I can cope with anything._ He walked past them and noticed someone up ahead. He looked up as he heard his name.

"Yo, Hyouma-kun. Looks like you made yourself infamous by saving me from Otome yesterday." Taisuke couldn't help grinning at him.

"Saving you from who? I don't remember saving anyone like you. As I recall, I didn't _have_ to save you." He ignored him and walked towards the shoe lockers.

"Man, you're harsh in the mornings too. Are you always like this? That girl who hit me yesterday was Otome Katou. She's a star player on the girls' basketball team and holds a crush on Makoto Itou, my best friend." Taisuke followed him to the lockers.

_So that girl's called Katou-san. This guy seems like he's full of information._ "So? I didn't want to oppose her but she got in my way yesterday. But anyways, you seemed to know a lot. Do you gather info on girls or something? Ryuuji turned to look at him.

"So you noticed. Listen and be amazed! I'm in charge of the famous school beauties club." He announced with pride.

"Is that another weird title for your odd hobbies?" Ryuuji was not amused. _School beauties club? It seems like a cover to spy on the girls in school. Is that how he got pictures of Ko-chan? I let him off easily last time but if I see those pictures again, I'm going to punch the daylights out of him._

"That's mean, man. If you're interested in finding out more information about any girl, I'm the guy to ask. I'm sure a cool-looking guy like you would want more than one girl." Taisuke smiled suggestively and placed his arm around Ryuuji's shoulder. _Hah, I got you now! No guy can resist this offer. Every guy in school would beg me for this favor!_

"Not interested. I got other things to do." Ryuuji removed Taisuke's arm from his shoulder abruptly.

"Seriously? I still owe you a favor man. I don't like owing people." Taisuke was dumbfounded. _He actually refused? No one has ever refused this offer before._

"If I need a favor, I'll bring it up. Until then, later." Ryuuji left for class. Taisuke scratched his head in disbelief. _You're way too cool man._

Kotonoha arrived at school on time like usual. She saw that Makoto and Sekai walked to school together and couldn't help feeling jealous. _I know they live in the same direction but why are they always so close together? I wish I could switch places with Saionji-san._ She put on her usual smile and shyly greeted the two of them.

Like another usual routine, she waved a brief goodbye as they left for their respective classes. With a sigh, she walked to her classroom and took her seat in the front.

Ryuuji noticed immediately when Kotonoha entered the room. _Ko-chan looks like something is worrying her. I wonder what's up? Did something happen on her way to school? Maybe I should leave after her tomorrow to find out what's wrong._ He kept his emotions hidden and acted like nothing wrong when class started.

When the teacher dismissed the class for lunch, Otome and her gang entered the classroom. _Here they come again… Are they here for Ko-chan again?_ Ryuuji just observed as Otome surprisingly, ignored Kotonoha and walked past her desk towards Ryuuji.

_Heeeh. So they're here for me this time._ Ryuuji relaxed in his chair and grinned as they approached.

Otome slammed her palms on his desk. "So we meet again transfer student. I still owe you for the humiliation yesterday. I can't beat you in a fight so I propose a new way to settle things. I challenge you to a basketball game, one-on-one." Otome grinned. She was a star player and there was no way he could beat her at her own game.

"Changing the terms to suit your advantages huh? Fine, I accept. Do you want to hold the match now?" Ryuuji's eyes gleamed, he loved to take on challenges especially when was a disadvantage for him. _Looks like school will be amusing after all._

"Right now. At the basketball courts. I don't have time after school and you're not currently busy so let's get it over with. Follow me." Otome led the way and her gang followed. Ryuuji got up from his desk and followed with his hands in pockets.

Kotonoha overheard the conversation. _Oh no, Ryuuji-kun is in trouble now for defending me. What should I do? I'll go ask Makoto and Saionji-san for help._ She got up quickly and left the classroom to find them.

Makoto and Sekai were at their usual spot on the rooftop, eating lunch together. Makoto was being fed by Sekai when Kotonoha abrupted came in.

"Oh hey, Kotonoha. Sekai was just fooling around with me. Don't misunderstand." Makoto was worried that Kotonoha would misunderstand again his relationship with Sekai.

"Makoto-kun, d-don't worry I trust you. But I'm not here for that. Could I ask you two to come with me? There's some trouble and I need help." Kotonoha led the two of them towards the basketball courts where Ryuuji and Katou were having their match.

By the time Kotonoha, Makoto and Sekai got there, the match had already started and Otome's friends from the basketball team were keeping track of the points. Surprisingly, Otome was not the one leading the points.

Ryuuji was.

"Oh wow, someone is actually beating Katou-san. Who is he? Do you know him, Katsura-san? I never saw him around before." Sekai tiptoed on her feet, trying to get a better glimpse of the opponent.

"U-um…he's a transfer student in my class. This match was my fault." Kotonoha clenched the bow on her school uniform.

"Your fault? How did that happen? Lemme guess, this guy saved you from trouble right?" Sekai couldn't help grin mischievously. Kotonoha timidly nodded.

"No way! I was right?" Sekai nudged Makoto in the elbow.

"Heeeh, Makoto, you got some competition now. If you're not careful, someone will snatch Katsura-san away from you."

"S-stop fooling around, Sekai. I'm sure he just wanted to help. Besides, I trust Kotonoha."

"Is this faith on your relationship?" Sekai wanted to goad him some more.

"I—" Makoto blushed. _More like I know that Kotonoha is uncomfortable around other guys._ He was interrupted when the people around him cheered; another point was scored during the match.

Ryuuji was working up an appetite. He was leading the match by ten points and Otome didn't seem like she was ready to give up yet. She had the ball and charged into the court, dribbling quickly and setting up a shot. Ryuuji saw and rushed forward trying to block it with his arms. She feinted and went under his block, almost catching him by surprise. _Almost got me there, girl. But I'm not giving up yet._ Ryuuji turned around and stole the ball from behind and went to his side of the court, scoring another easy shot.

The game was over.

"Huff…puff… I underestimated you, transfer student. I didn't think there would be anyone else that I could lose to." Otome was having difficulty breathing.

"You're not so bad yourself… Katou-san. Since I won, I guess we're even now?" Ryuuji wiped off some sweat onto his sleeve.

"Che… I guess so. A deal's a deal, we're even now." Otome scowled, this was the second time he beat her and he made it look so effortless. _Damn, I thought I could win. Is this guy good at everything? I'll come up with another plan of revenge. Don't let your guard down, transfer student!_

Ryuuji smirked and walked off the courts, holding his uniform blazer over his shoulder. He got a glimpse of Kotonoha in the crowd that had formed during the match but he maintained his distance to avoid suspicion. _Did she come to watch? Or to interfere?_ The he saw a male next to her with a hyperactive girl. _So that's Makoto? He doesn't seem like much. She really likes him?_

He felt some eyes behind him. "Who are you looking at, Hyouma-kun?" He sighed internally. _It's him again._

"What do you want, pervert?" He scowled. He didn't like associating with him if he didn't need to.

"Hey that hurts. You never quit with the cold demeanor huh? I saw your match with Katou-san. You're so awesome! How did you learn to play like that? Are you planning to join the boys' basketball team?" Taisuke started rambling.

"What's it to you? I'm off to the cafeteria, don't follow me." He walked briskly to the cafeteria.

"OH MY GOD, did you see that? Katou-san **lost**! To someone who just transferred here! Who is he? Now, I'm curious…" Sekai's eyes gleamed like she found someone interesting to investigate.

"Oh **no**…it's that habit of hers again. She won't stop until she satisfies her curiosity." Makoto groaned with a hand to his forehead.

"W-what habit? He's just a transfer student from America who has already obtained a master's degree in business. What's so special about him?" Kotonoha grimaced. _If she looks into Ryuuji-kun, she might found out that we're living together! I can't let that happen!_

"Hoooh, so he's not just your normal, everyday transfer student. He also looks foreign too…" Sekai had her fingers on her chin and burrowed her eyebrows in thought.

…..

"Nah, just kidding. I'm too busy with my personal mission!"

Makoto and Kotonoha sighed in relief. Both paused for a moment. _What mission?_

"What mission, Sekai?" He was curious.

"To make sure that you and Katsura-san are all lovey-dovey!" She smirked.

Makoto and Kotonoha lowered their heads trying to hide their heating, red faces.

Kotonoha tried to change the subject. "L-let's go eat lunch now. I was planning to stop the match but I was too late… nevermind. Thanks for coming with me. But let's go eat!" She smiled cheerfully and led the way back to the rooftop.

School ended for the day and Ryuuji sighed in relief. During lunch, Taisuke kept on following him around, asking all sorts of questions. He tried to ignore him but he was relentless and hounded him everywhere he went. Fortunately, they had different classes so they went their separate ways but it looked like Taisuke wouldn't give up, he wanted to be Ryuuji's friend. _That guy was so annoying today. Thanks to him, I didn't get to see Ko-chan during lunch since I was trying to avoid him. He thinks he's on to something but I won't let him get the best of me!_

Ryuuji left the school building and waited at the school gate. He knew Kotonoha had another school council meeting since she left right after class ended for the day. He checked the time on his cell phone.

Half an hour passed.

Just when he was about to give up waiting and leave the school premises, he saw Kotonoha come out of the school building.

"Hey, Kotonoha did you finish your council meeting?" He greeted her.

"R-Ryuuji-kun? Why are you still here? Were you perhaps waiting for me?" Kotonoha's eyes were wide in surprise.

"Um… yeah… but it's not what you think! I just wanted to ask what groceries I could get in preparation for dinner!" Ryuuji quickly made an excuse; he didn't want to cause any misunderstandings since Kotonoha already had a boyfriend.

She approached him. "Just for groceries? Is that all?"

He was feeling uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze. "Yeah, just for groceries." He looked away to the side. _This hurts Ko-chan._

"Anyways let's get the groceries and head home. I'm sure Kokoro-chan is waiting for us." He turned around and started walking towards the train station.

As they were walking, Ryuuji started a conversation. "Hey, Kotonoha, did you watch my basketball match?" He casually asked.

Kotonoha blushed; she still wasn't used to being addressed by her first name by him. "Yes….I'm sorry that you have been targeted by Katou-san and her friends." She stopped briefly.

Ryuuji turned around, getting the feeling that she felt so far from him. "Don't worry about it. Thanks to her, school has gotten more interesting."

_More interesting?_ Kotonoha looked up and saw him grinning. "Is school boring for you, R-Ryuuji-kun?"

"Ah…well...not really."

"Is it because of Katou-san?" Kotonoha was curious.

"It's a secret." He couldn't look her in the eyes and turned away. "We better hurry."

His response to her question sparked her curiosity unconsciously. She didn't know why but she wanted to hear the answer to that question. _Who could it be if not Katou-san? There's no one else that would dare to challenge Ryuuji-kun since he looks scary._ She left it at that note.

They got to the train station on time before the train left. When they got off, they walked towards the nearest grocery store and bought some groceries for tonight's dinner. Then, they headed home with groceries in hand silently, no longer conversing.

When they arrived at Kotonoha's house and opened the door. A familiar little girl with pigtails jumped out.

"WELCOME HOME ONEE-CHAN! RYUUJI-NIICHAN!" Kokoro greeted enthusiastically.

As usual, she like to hug Kotonoha and bury her head in her breasts as part of the greeting. "Hmm…onee-chan…"

"K-kokoro…must you do this every time?" Kotonoha blushed, aware of their audience.

Ryuuji just stood there with groceries in his hand with a grin on his face. He was trying hard not to laugh.

"Alright, Kokoro-chan. I need to put the groceries away so could you please let your sister go?"

Kokoro nodded as she let go of a blushing Kotonoha.

He entered the house and left the groceries on the counter. He then went quickly upstairs to his room and put his school bag away and went back downstairs to the kitchen. He sorted out the groceries and one by one he placed them in the refrigerator. While he was doing this, Kotonoha approached him from behind and asked if he needed any help. Ryuuji kindly refused.

"No thanks, Kotonoha. I was asked by your father to care of both you and Kokoro-chan so I can handle this."

Kotonoha was amazed by his commitment to her father's request. She didn't have much experience around boys but she could tell that he was different from those she knew aside from Makoto. He may seem arrogant and rough but he was actually gentle and caring to those he knew, especially around Kokoro. He treated her like his little sister and showered her with attention. Her parents were usually working and so she was always worried that Kokoro would be lonely with just the two of them but it seemed like Kokoro was happier with Ryuuji around. Kotonoha didn't want to admit it but she was slowly getting used to having Ryuuji in the house. Even though his presence was influencing how she felt about men in general, she still loved Makoto the best.

Kotonoha left Ryuuji in the kitchen and headed upstairs to her room. It contained her bed and her desk with the addition of a few stuffed animals. She adored stuffed animals and collected a few. She heard her ring tone on her cell phone ring. She picked her cell phone up and answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Kotonoha." It was Makoto who answered.

"M-Makoto-kun? Did you need something?"

"Ah…well…K-Kotonoha….are you free this weekend?" Makoto stammered.

Kotonoha blushed as she answered. _Is he asking me out for a date?_ "Yes, I'm free…Why do you ask?"

"….I-I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie this weekend?"

"A movie? Yes, I would be glad to!" She answered cheerfully.

"Really! How about this Sunday at 11am?" Makoto was pumping his fist in the air on the other side in joy.

"Sure. Let's meet this Sunday!"

Click.

_I'm going out on another date with Makoto-kun! What should I wear! Wait, it's too soon to decide I still have a few more days to decide._ Yet, she couldn't hide her happiness. Makoto and Kotonoha just started going out and they have been on one other date besides this upcoming one.

Nearby, Kokoro overheard her sister's conversation with her boyfriend and walked into her room.

"Ne…onee-chan? Are you going on a date with your boyfriend?" She asked innocently.

Kotonoha blushed. "K-kokoro! Y-yes with Makoto-kun. I've told you about him remember?"

"I'm happy for you onee-chan! I hope it goes well! I'm going to help Ryuuji-niichan with dinner!" She left the room as quickly as she entered.

Downstairs, Ryuuji was busy preparing dinner and had an apron on.

"Ryuuji-niichan! Do you need help?" Kokoro walked in the kitchen.

"Kokoro-chan? No, I'm fine. Thank you." He went back to cutting potatoes.

"Hey, Hey guess what? Onee-chan is going on a date with her boyfriend!" Kokoro piped.

He tried to sound uninterested. "Oh, really? I hope she has fun." He was now cutting carrots.

"Yep, yep. Onee-chan looked so happy. I'm sure Makoto-niichan is a nice guy!"

"I hope so, Kokoro-chan. I'm sure she'll have a nice time." _Well if he makes her unhappy I'm going to confront him._ He prepared a pot full of water and set it on the stove on medium high heat.

"Hey, Ryuuji-niichan?" Kokoro paused for a moment.

"Yes?" Ryuuji got the feeling that she was about to ask something personal.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" He stopped slicing chicken. "Why do you ask, Kokoro-chan?"

"Um…I want to see both Onee-chan and Ryuuji-niichan happy! Is that wrong?"

Ryuuji washed his hands clean and turned around to see Kokoro with her head down; sorry that she asked such a personal question. "I'm happy even if I don't have a girlfriend, Kokoro-chan." He knelt down and gently ruffled the top of her head.

She looked up and saw that he was smiling at her. "Why?"

"Because your family treats me so kindly." He touched her cheek fondly for a brief moment before getting back up to his cutting board. He washed his hands again and proceeded to cut the chicken meat.

Kokoro was so touched. No one else besides her parents and her sister showered her with this much attention. She really was glad that Ryuuji came to live with them. She also secretly hoped that her sister's boyfriend was as kind as Ryuuji.

Ryuuji finished preparing dinner which was chicken katsu curry on rice. Kokoro helped him set up the dining table and he called Kotonoha down from upstairs. They all sat down at the table to eat the dinner he prepared. The night ended quickly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author Notes:** Thanks for the reviews! Someone had asked when this story will get "M" and I put this rating just in case I planned on doing lemons… I'll change the rating if it never happens….By the way, I'm looking for a beta who I can bounce ideas with and add more descriptive context to my work… anyone interested? Happy Holidays and enjoy!

Chapter Four – Admonition

The current teacher of class 1-4 was lecturing about taking partial derivatives and describing the various ways to solve them. As he paced around in front of the class near the chalkboard and continued to lecture, holding his notes in front of him, he noticed one individual that stood out. Of course he heard the rumors about how exceptionally brilliant this young male was, but that was no reason for him to sit in _his_ class not paying attention. He stopped pacing and stood in front of his lecture podium, finishing the last statement of his discussion and was about to point out an individual to solve the problem he had written on the chalkboard.

This was his opportunity to disprove the rumors and show that the silver-haired brat in the back of the room was nothing like he was rumored to be. It was time for him to demonstrate his authority. He pushed up the glasses on his face to hide the smirk that was slowly forming.

"Ryuuji Hyouma-kun, could you please come up here and solve this problem?" The teacher politely asked.

There was no answer.

Ryuuji was facing away from the front of the room and gazing at the sky. He was sitting upright but slouched with his chin resting on his palm and his elbow on his desk. It was clear as day that he was not paying attention. His head was in the clouds, thinking about what happened earlier this morning…..

"_Good morning, Kotonoha you're up early." Ryuuji approached the kitchen to make breakfast but Kotonoha had already beaten him to it. _

"_Good morning, Ryuuji-kun." Kotonoha set a pan on the stove and turned around._

_When he saw her wearing the kitchen apron over her school uniform, he was at a loss for words. It accentuated her every curve and complemented her current appearance. Her black violet hair was pulled up in a pony-tail, revealing the nape of her neck; this was a style she never pulled off in school. He just stood there and stared for a few minutes before he regained his senses._

_Completely oblivious to his feelings at the moment, Kotonoha tilted her head and arched her eyebrows curiously, wondering if there was anything wrong with her outward impression. "I-Is there something on my face, Ryuuji-kun?" _

_He realized that he was staring and jerked his head to the side, hiding the flush that was developing on his cheeks. "I-It's nothing. You look good in that apron…" He mumbled that last sentence incoherently._

"_Oh, okay." Kotonoha turned around, going back to the task at hand…._

Ryuuji couldn't deny the fact that Kotonoha looked stunning in a plain, white apron. Guys had a thing for girls who looked good in aprons and Ryuuji was extremely susceptible. He grew up without a mother since she passed away when he was younger but he had also forgotten what she looked like. Still, he shouldn't have stared at Kotonoha this morning. The apron highlighted her best features: her full bust, her slim waist and the way her silky hair framed her face and exposed that beautiful neck of hers….

"RYUUJI HYOUMA-KUN, ARE YOU LISTENING? PLEASE COME HERE AND SOLVE THIS PROBLEM!" To emphasize his point, the teacher threw a piece of chalk at him, aiming for his head.

Snap.

The force of catching the chalk broke it in two.

Ryuuji's right hand had caught the piece of chalk instinctively. However, he didn't notice until after he caught it, feeling the chalky texture in his hands. One piece remained in his hand while the other dropped onto his desk, leaving a slight trail of chalk dust.

The movement itself distracted Ryuuji from the indecent thoughts he was having. Coming back to reality he berated himself. _You idiot! How could you think about Kotonoha like that?_ He turned to face the front after catching the chalk and noticed that the teacher was slightly riled up. _Did I miss something? He looks pissed._

"Hyouma-kun, do you think you can daydream in my class all day! I don't care if you _do_ have an M.B.A from America…. That's no reason to be lazy in my class! Get up here and solve this problem!" _Kids these days… being lazy in class…dyeing their hair against school regulations like they can do whatever they want…silver hair… how un-slightly…_

The teacher obviously showed contempt towards Ryuuji. Ryuuji came to class every day with an unkempt and incomplete school uniform. He didn't wear the red tie that completed the uniform nor did he button the two buttons on his black blazer. His hair color was also against school regulations, but he didn't care. He told the school administrators that it was his natural hair color and since he had connections, they didn't push it further. That was the final straw. The teacher didn't care what background the young male came from, it was obvious that he didn't take school seriously and that irritated him.

_Che…how annoying._ Ryuuji stood up from his seat and walked to the front of the classroom. His right hand still held the chalk that he caught and he used it to solve the problem on the board.

He pondered the problem for a moment. _He wants me to solve this? Heeh… it's too easy…_

The math teacher thought he couldn't solve it and pressed him. "Are you _really_ an M.B.A. student? If so, this should be a piece of cake…. right Hyouma-kun?" _This is what you get for not paying attention in my class!_

Ryuuji narrowed his green eyes at the response and proceed to write his answer. _You arrogant bastard… _

When he was done writing, he put the chalk back on the tray holder and voiced his answer verbally, taunting the teacher as he did so.

"Teacher, you wrote out an unexpanded polynomial which I expanded and then took the partial derivative with respect to the first variable. _By the way_…. how you originally wrote the problem would have given an imaginary variable as an answer if you used the quadratic equation to solve it… so I fixed it for you… after all I _am_ an M.B.A. student…"

The class and the teacher were stunned.

They were completely fooled by Ryuuji's appearance and assumed that he knew nothing. Of course, they remembered that when he was first introduced to the class, the homeroom teacher mentioned his academic background, but they thought it was a lie. How could a rough, arrogant looking guy have an M.B.A. or whatever degree it was called?

Satisfied, Ryuuji walked back to his desk, swiping his hands clean of the chalk dust that lingered on his hands. Once back in his seat, Ryuuji leaned back and made himself comfortable. The teacher had lost and there was no away that he could assert his authority on Ryuuji anymore. Defeated, the teacher continued to lecture and ignored Ryuuji, not wanting to embarrass himself any further than he already had.

**XXX**

The bell rang.

The teacher at the time concluded his lesson and dismissed them for lunch. As soon as the teacher left the room, Otome Katou and her friends entered on cue.

Like the day before, they moved as a group and surrounded their target.

However, the target had changed.

Kotonoha saw them come in and braced herself for their usual verbal attack. Yet again, they ignored her and headed towards Ryuuji's desk as a group, trying to surround him. They lost interest in her the moment someone else tried to defy their superiority. Otome was known for her stubbornness and arrogance; she didn't plan leaving Ryuuji alone until she defeated him. Even if she did, she would continue to flaunt her superiority, showing his place among his peers.

_Ever since Ryuuji-kun showed up, Katou-san and her friends have stopped bullying me. Is this also your doing, Ryuuji-kun? _Kotonoha was grateful for what Ryuuji had done for her even if it seemed like it wasn't on purpose.

Otome and her friends were now more focused on getting revenge from the one person who opposed them so openly. Ryuuji was never asked to do this by Kotonoha and it wasn't necessary. It was his way of protecting her. He enjoyed fighting openly against Otome as well as making meals for Kotonoha and her sister. Despite how he appeared in school, he was a caring person.

He never wanted anything in return nor did he ask for anything. _He's so different from other guys….except for Makoto-kun. They are both so kind. I see why father respects him so much._

She stood up from her desk with her lunch clutched in one of her hands. She wondered if he needed help but decided against it. _I would get in the way…_She couldn't do anything and would end up being a hindrance than a support. Ryuuji wouldn't have any trouble anyways. Even though she felt a little guilty for leaving him on his own, she left for the rooftop to eat lunch with Makoto and Sekai. She was confident that he could handle it on his own.

Katou approached Ryuuji's desk and Ryuuji looked up.

He smirked in amusement. _It's her again. Who else would dare to approach me so abruptly?_

"What can I do for you K-a-t-o-u-san?" He sounded out the syllables of her last name in a taunting voice.

He was sitting comfortably in his seat, slouching slightly with his arms crossed. Both his posture and his gaze illustrated the confidence that radiated from his being.

It was obvious that he didn't think much of them as a threat.

"You silver devil! I might have lost to you twice but I challenge you to another duel! I won't lose this time around!" Otome shouted haughtily as she crossed her arms and stared down on him.

Ryuuji got up from his desk suddenly. He didn't have time to deal with this. There were more important things. "You're a sore loser aren't you? As much as I enjoyed playing with you, today I'm busy maybe next time." He walked to the door.

Otome was miffed. _He thinks this is a game?_

How dare he call her a sore loser?

She tried goading him. "Ha! So you're afraid to lose to a helpless girl like me?"

Her friends chimed in. "Yeah, you were lucky to win against her last time even though it was Katou-san's advantage. There's no way Katou-san would lose to you twice."

As he got to the door, he decided to reply. "Heh, say what you want. Nothing will change the fact that she lost to me _twice_. I don't have time to play with you girls this time. **Don't make me repeat myself.**" He shot them a deadly look. Otome and her girls stopped protesting as soon as they saw his piercing green eyes.

He meant every word. They froze where they stood as if the ground was coated with a sticky film, petrified by the look he just gave them. Not sparing another glance, he then left the classroom.

Otome and her friends recovered and were able to move after Ryuuji left. Otome was extremely frustrated and lashed out verbally in anger.

"WHO THE HELL DOES HE THINK HE IS-? YOU'LL REGRET THIS….MARK MY WORDS!" She left in a fury, her ponytail whipping behind her and her friends trailing after her like devoted pets.

**XXX**

Ryuuji wandered around the school corridors, wondering what he was going to do for lunch. Before he could make a decision, he bumped into Makoto, Sekai and Taisuke. The three were hanging out together; he noticed that the one who Taisuke pointed out as Kotonoha's boyfriend, was very close to the female next to him. The two of them were chatting away and laughing together without a care in the world.

Taisuke noticed that Ryuuji were observing them and abruptly stopped. Following Taisuke, both Sekai and Makoto stopped as well.

"What's the matter Taisuke? Someone you know?" Just by glancing over him briefly, Makoto could tell that this guy was dangerous. Ryuuji just stood there with his left hand in his pocket and his right hand hanging at his side. His entire posture showed that he was not someone to be trifled with.

"Hey Hyouma-kun! Want to grab lunch together?" Taisuke gestured to the cafeteria but he noticed that Ryuuji had his eyes firmly set on his buddy, Makoto. _Did something happen between the two of them?_

"OMIGOD! It's HIM! The guy who beat Katou-san at the basketball match!" Sekai couldn't contain her excitement and rushed forward. She circled around him and checked him out. She noticed the way he wore his uniform, the color of his hair and the confidence he illustrated with his stance and posture. Satisfied with what she saw, Sekai stepped back to Makoto's side.

"Heeeh…. He could end up being your greatest rival, Makoto!" She mischievously grinned and nudged her elbow in Makoto's arm.

"Cut it out Sekai. Stop joking around." Makoto was obviously uncomfortable under Ryuuji's scrutinizing gaze.

"_She's right you know." Ryuuji casually stepped forward until he was facing Makoto, then he suddenly grappled him by the collar. He had no trouble lifting him off the floor. Makoto felt helpless in his grasp. _

"_So you're Makoto Itou….I can't believe she chose __**you**__…" Ryuuji snarled, barely keeping a lid on his emotions._

"_You… __**bastard**__…she's waiting for you and you're here flirting with this girl!" He then pulled him in close and whispered, so that no one else could hear. "If you're not careful I'll snatch her away from you…."_

_Ryuuji then released him and left abruptly, heading towards the cafeteria to get his lunch. He didn't apologize nor did he spare a second glance. _

He dismissed the possible scenario from his thoughts, he couldn't afford to make Kotonoha's boyfriend wary of him unless it was necessary. Instead, Ryuuji kept to himself and strolled forward, purposely bumping into Makoto with his shoulder, causing Makoto to stumble over to his side.

"Makoto! Are you okay? That jerk… Taisuke… I can't believe you're friends with that guy!" Sekai was at Makoto's side, looking over him with worry and concern.

"I wouldn't really consider as a friend…more like an acquaintance… but he's usually not like this…sure he may come off cold but he's a really nice guy…I just don't know what's gotten into him…" Taisuke scratched his head and shrugged.

"Ah! I almost forgot! You're eating lunch with Katsura-san today! You better hurry!"

She ushered Makoto in the direction towards the rooftop and excused herself to lunch. She sprinted away with such enthusiasm that Makoto smiled to himself and headed off.

Taisuke was left by himself. _What was with that look earlier? Hyouma-kun looked like he was out to get Makoto's blood…._

**XXX**

Kotonoha was at the rooftop waiting for Makoto.

When he arrived, she timidly waved for him to sit down next to her. As soon as he did, she opened up her lunch box and shared her food with him.

It looked delicious. It was a Japanese-styled lunch box; a square shaped tray separated in different column sizes for different dishes. There were octopus shaped hotdogs, small egg omelettes, rice balls and some fruit.

She woke up early this morning to make it but she didn't regret it.

"Oh wow, Kotonoha. Did you make all of this? Thanks for the food!" Makoto picked up a rice ball and bit into it.

"It's so good….thanks Kotonoha!"

Seeing the way Makoto's face lit up while he ate her lunch made her effort worthwhile. _He likes it…I'm so glad…_

She enjoyed spending time with Makoto alone without the presence of Sekai. Of course, Kotonoha would never reveal her discomfort to Makoto and would generously offer for Sekai to join them. However, Sekai's intuition told her that it would be better if she left the two lovebirds alone since it was obvious to her that Kotonoha felt jealous of her friendship with Makoto. She took it upon herself to eat lunch with her friends, giving some distance between her and Makoto.

Either way, Kotonoha appreciated the time she could spend alone with Makoto.

Kotonoha ate her share of the lunch as well but when they both finished eating, she didn't know what to say. They never had any trouble getting together to eat lunch but they could never easily share a conversation. Makoto's interests were greatly different from those of his well endowed bookworm. The atmosphere between them was usually quiet and awkward.

Just like it was now.

_What should I say? It's too quiet….I have nothing in common with Makoto-kun…. I wish I was like Saionji-san who has no trouble speaking to him…_ Kotonoha started to clean up and rewrap the lunch box in its original handkerchief.

_Geez, why is it always like this when it's just the two of us? Say something, Makoto!_ He tried to start a conversation to end the uncomfortable silence. "H-hey thanks for agreeing to go watch a movie with me." _That's such a lame way to start a conversation!_

"S-sure. I was glad that you asked me, Makoto-kun."

…

_Try to keep the conversation going, Makoto!_ He casually brought up another topic.

"So…about last time, why did you ask Sekai and me to go help you out? Was it because of the transfer student?" Makoto tried to hide the discomfort he felt when he was reminded of how the silver-haired handled him earlier. _There is no way that she would intentionally want to help him… The guy is a delinquent! She couldn't be interested in him right? _

"Eh! Well…Ryuuji-kun…I-I mean the transfer student… got into trouble with Katou-san because he stood up for me and I wanted to stop the match so I asked you guys for help. But I guess he didn't need it…." She started lacing her fingers together as she spoke quietly, obviously uncomfortable talking about this. _Is Makoto jealous of Ryuuji-kun? B-But there's nothing between us! He's basically the son of father's acquaintance! He's not even my friend!_

"I see… Do you like him Kotonoha? You seem really close to him." Makoto felt a tinge of jealously when she called the transfer student "Ryuuji-kun." _They're on a first name basis already!_

"N-no! He's just a classmate! I could never like another boy except you Makoto-kun!" Kotonoha adamantly responded. _How could you not believe in me? I love you Makoto-kun!_

Makoto cheered up after hearing her say that. "Sorry Kotonoha, I guess I was feeling jealous. I… care for you, you know?" He reached for her hand and she instinctively jerked away. Her rejection to his touch felt like pins stabbing into his heart. It was clear to Kotonoha that Makoto was hurt by her reaction.

"S-sorry Makoto-kun! It was just too sudden and it's….embarrassing. Please forgive me." _I've never held hands with a boy before…I'm just so scared._

"I-It's fine. Don't worry about it." Makoto managed a weak smile. _Why won't she let me hold her hand? We're dating right? Is it too much to ask to hold her hand? I thought it's something normal for couples to do…_

They resumed their awkward silence for the rest of the lunch period. After lunch ended, they left for their respective classes.

As Kotonoha slowly walked back, she was ashamed of her reaction earlier. _Makoto-kun is my boyfriend! It should be fine to hold his hand right? _

She remained deep in thought as continued down the corridors until she reached the doorway of class 1-4. _Makoto-kun knows that I am working hard to be his girlfriend right? I wish I could seek someone for advice…_ But there was no one she could turn too since she didn't have any friends in or outside the classroom. She did know a few people from the student council but they were just acquaintances not friends.

To her, Ryuuji was the same. He was just the son of an acquaintance of her father's; he had nothing to do with her. Yet, he cooked meals for her and her sister; he adored Kokoro and shown them kindness that he rarely displays while in school. It was becoming increasingly difficult to justify him as just an acquaintance.

What was he then? A friend?

She sighed internally as she walked back to her classroom and took her seat.

Ryuuji had already returned to the classroom and noticed the expression she had on her face as she came in. She tried to hide it with a smile on her face but he saw right through her. The way her thin eyebrows bunched along her brow bone and the way her eyes narrowed in focus told him that she was worried about something. _Did something happen during lunch? Did he do something to her-? Makoto….that bastard…._

**XXX**

School ended and Kotonoha left for another council meeting. It was getting closer and closer to the spring festival and there were endless policies and procedures to go over, not to mention allocating the budgets for each classroom. They also didn't have enough help so each meeting usually took more time.

Ryuuji left the classroom right after school ended and entered the classroom next door which was class 1-3. He found the black haired male he was looking for. Makoto was sitting right next to Sekai and was gathering his books into his school bag. It didn't surprise Ryuuji at all to see the two together since he observed how close they were at lunch.

Makoto was getting ready to leave when he heard a lot of chit-chat behind him. He turned around and saw the silver-haired young man from lunch. The green-eyed devil who purposely bumped into him. After he packed his bag and made sure nothing was missing, he walked up to him.

"It's _you_ again. What you do you want from me?" It was obvious that there was tension between the two of them.

"I need to talk with you _alone_. Meet me at the rooftop." Ryuuji turned and left as quickly as he came.

Makoto followed. _What is it with this guy? Taisuke said he's a decent guy, but why does he look like he's out to get me? Did I offend him or something?_

When Makoto opened the door to the rooftop, Ryuuji was already there. He had his arms crossed and leaned against the fence. His emerald colored eyes were only focused on one person the moment the door opened.

Him.

Ryuuji was slowly contemplating on how he should deal with him. It was obvious that this guy had feelings for the brown female he was with and that wouldn't do at all. Kotonoha would end up getting hurt if this guy didn't sort out his feelings. He wanted to beat the bastard into a bloody pulp, to teach him a lesson he would never forget, but he couldn't do that. Kotonoha would never forgive him. So he decided to threaten him.

"You're finally here. Makoto Itou, or should I say… Itou-kun?" Ryuuji remained where he was while Makoto approached.

"What do you want? Why do you keep bothering me?" Makoto stopped walking the moment he reached a foot away from the fence.

"Let's cut to the chase. Do you have feelings for Kotonoha?"

Makoto's eyes were wide in surprise. _Why is he on a first-name basis with her?_

"…..O-Of course. I love her."

"What about that girl you're always with? The cheerful girl with brown hair? Do you like her?" Ryuuji observed the slight hesitation Makoto gave off as he answered as he continued to interrogate him. _Does he really love her? Or is it just a crush?_

"Sekai? She's just my childhood friend! She was the one who got me and Kotonoha together! I owe her!"

_That's interesting. When it comes to his childhood friend, he shows more conviction. Could it be that he's not aware of his feelings for her? But if this continues…Kotonoha will get hurt! I can't let that happen!_

Ryuuji's eyes threatened to ignite as he tried to fight the raging emotions of him.

Makoto was intimidated by Ryuuji's gaze and couldn't look him in the face.

The atmosphere was laced with tension. Ryuuji's posture had changed. He was no longer leaning against the fence for comfort; his stance suggested that he was ready to fight. His hands were clenched into fists… as Ryuuji continued to cross examine Makoto.

"Why is it that when I ask you about Kotonoha that you're brief? Why is that when I ask you about your childhood friend that you're so defensive! DO YOU REALLY LOVE KOTONOHA, ITOU-KUN!" Ryuuji's voice picked up as his emotions bubbled up, threatening to spill over.

Makoto didn't love Kotonoha, it was obvious to Ryuuji that he had deeper feelings for his childhood friend; he defended her while he never mentioned why he loved Kotonoha.

Ryuuji's intensity caused Makoto to step back defensively.

"What! This has nothing to do with you! Who I have feelings for is none of your business! Who are you anyway and why do you care?"

"It doesn't matter! I can't believe that she chose you… you…of all people… YOU DON'T DESERVE HER!" It infuriated him to think that even though Kotonoha was terrified of men, she chose to love someone whose feelings were so weak! It would be so easy to tear this guy limb from limb; he had the strength to do it. But he also imagined the consequences of doing so… Kotonoha would hate him. He didn't want her to hate him but he couldn't let this guy hurt her either… With the little control he had left, he composed himself and started to walk away.

"If you don't make her happy…I'll **kill** you." With his final declaration, Ryuuji stormed towards the door leading to the stairs away from the rooftop. The moment he gripped the door handle, Makoto desperately called out, seeking to understand.

"W-Wait! If you like her so much why don't you take her away from me?"

Ryuuji didn't face him as he answered simply. "Because she chose **you**." _And I'm a fool for not coming back sooner…_

He opened the door to the stairs and left the rooftop.

Makoto stood where he was for the past couple of minutes, in a stupor, thinking what had just happened. _That jerk! He looked like he would have killed me! How dare he question my feelings for Kotonoha! Maybe Sekai was right, I do have a rival. Arghhh! What should I be worried about anyway? __**I'm**__ Kotonoha's boyfriend! I can and will make her happy!_

Satisfied with his resolution, Makoto left the rooftop of the school building and headed home by himself. Today, Kotonoha had another meeting and so she apologized to him for not being able to walk with him. He assured her it was okay since he understood that she had a lot of responsibility as the class president of her class. He didn't hold it against her.

**XXX**

Kotonoha sighed again. How many times was this? The meeting was uninteresting as usual and they weren't making any progress. One of the members suggested that they recruit more helpers for the student council since they needed the help. Another suggested that they limit the number of events to be held so they could complete their preparations in time. Many disagreed and argued that the students were waiting for this festival and that they couldn't cut out events. All of a sudden, someone mentioned the silver-haired transfer student.

Their discussion interrupted her thoughts when they mentioned Ryuuji. "Hey, isn't there a rumor that there's this new transfer student who supposedly beat up Katou-san and her friends?"

_Wait what? Why did they bring him up?_ Kotonoha started to pay close attention.

Another member chimed in. "Right…. No one stands against him because he looks like a delinquent…. That's perfect! If we can convince him to join the student council, no one would dare to refuse to help us!"

"Yeah!" More members agreed. "Let's take a vote on this!"

_Ryuuji-kun looks like a delinquent? That's what I thought so at first, but he's actually really gentle. But if he joins the student council, people could investigate him back to me….which would lead Makoto-kun to suspect me! I can't let that happen!_ Kotonoha refused to vote for the suggestion but she was outvoted. Everyone else unanimously agreed to recruit Ryuuji and since Kotonoha was in his class, she was appointed to recruit him.

She complained internally. _This is another perk of the job._ Satisfied with their arrangements, the meeting concluded and the members of the student council were dismissed.

**XXX**

After leaving the rooftop, Ryuuji was an irritable mood. He couldn't believe that the rumors were true. Kotonoha's boyfriend, Makoto, was a major disappointment. He also couldn't believe he let himself loose like that.

Why did he lose his composure?

_I love Kotonoha…and to see her with __**him **__breaks my heart. I can't trust him with Kotonoha's happiness…he can't see the pain she suffers everyday… but if she feels happiness by being with him then… who am I to judge that? _

He thought he could be satisfied with just living in the same house with Kotonoha, but now he wanted more. He wanted to protect her and stay by her side. _Argh…I'm so despicable…why do I feel this way? Is this what it means to fall deeply in love? To not have your love returned…it truly is more painful than anything else I have suffered…_

Ryuuji left the school building with these thoughts lingering in his mind. He paid no attention to where he was walking and ended up at the nearest playground. The voices of a few kids nearby broke his stupor.

"Eh! How did it get up there? Come back down!" A young boy, around the age of six or seven, standing near a tree, was gesturing and pointing at something above him. He wore a red baseball cap, a white t-shirt and blue jeans. The little girl beside him was around the same age as well. She had her hair in pigtails and was wearing a pink tank top with blue shorts.

Ryuuji approached the two children and followed the target of their gaze as he searched the reason for their frustration. It was slightly obscured by the leaves and the branches but he found it. There was an orange and white striped kitten mewling at its distress, cowering on a tree branch. It was definitely stuck in the tree.

"What's the matter you two?" They turned around and the sight of Ryuuji scared them. His silver hair and green eyes were foreign to them. They had never seen anyone like him and immediately reacted as if he was dangerous. They flinched as he came closer and moved over to the side of the tree, far from his reach.

With the two children out of the way, Ryuuji ascended the tree and gently scooped up the kitten into his arms. He then landed down safely and handed the kitten to the kids.

"Here you go. Be careful next time." The two kids were impressed at how quickly he got the kitten back. The shock wore off when they remembered their manners and thanked him.

"Thanks Oniichan! You're actually a nice guy!" The two children grinned happily and left him to go play with their kitten.

He then gently smiled, reminded of how carefree he was when he was at their age.

As Ryuuji left the playground and headed towards the nearest train station, he noticed a female wearing his school uniform with long, black violet hair. At first he thought he mistaken the girl for Kotonoha but as he took another glance at her back, he was sure it was her.

Kotonoha trudged along the street, clutching firmly on her school bag, obviously deep in thought. She was contemplating on how to accomplish the task she was assigned to do. It put her in a troubling predicament.

He approached her from behind.

"Hey, Kotonoha." Kotonoha turned around, wondering where the voice came from. Ryuuji rose his hand in a friendly greeting.

"Ryuuji-kun, you haven't gone home yet?"

"No…I was held up by something. Did you just finish your meeting?" Ryuuji decided to keep the details of his confrontation with Makoto to himself.

"Y-Yes. The meeting went smoothly today and I'm heading home now." Kotonoha considered asking Ryuuji about joining the student council, but couldn't decide how to ask him. She continued to trudge towards the train station, clutching her school bag in turmoil.

Ryuuji followed.

"Is something the matter?" He noticed how firmly she gripped her bag and the heavy atmosphere that surrounded her. There was obviously something on her mind and it bothered him.

_Is Ryuuji-kun worried about me? That can't be. I'm thinking too much into it. He's really just a caring person._ Kotonoha smiled cheerfully and shook her head. "I-It's nothing. We just came to a unanimous decision about something during the meeting."

"Oh really? And what was it?" _Shouldn't it be a good thing? Why would she be concerned?_ He continued to listen as he trailed behind her, giving the time and space she needed to herself.

"I rather not say."

…..

_I guess I'm not someone she could confide in yet huh?_ Ryuuji picked up his pace until he was walking beside her. Then he addressed her, his voice full of honesty.

"Kotonoha, if anything is bothering you, I'm here to listen. There's nothing that can offend me if it's from you."

Kotonoha answered while following his pace, unaware that she had no trouble walking alongside him, a guy she had previously feared. "It's not that R-Ryuuji-kun. I didn't want to say anything earlier because the task I was asked to do is a little embarrassing."

"What was it that they asked you to do? It wasn't anything unreasonable was it? If so… I'll-"

"No, it's not that. It's….just they wanted you to join the student council…" There she said it.

"That's it?...pff….hahaha" All of a sudden Ryuuji was in a fit of laughter. _That's what was bothering her? To ask me to join the student council? That's so cute of you Kotonoha!_

"Don't laugh at me please….I was worried that they would find the connection between you and me." Kotonoha was embarrassed, her cheeks turning slightly red. _I didn't think he would laugh. Now, I feel really stupid for worrying so much about it. Ryuuji-kun doesn't seem like the person to blurt things out like that._

Ryuuji stifled his laughter. "pff…S-Sorry…but don't worry…I won't let anyone know that we live together…especially your boyfriend, Kotonoha. That was what worried you right?" _Why else would she hesitate to ask me for such a meager task?_

She sheepishly nodded, ashamed that she thought so little of him. She didn't think she could trust him but after living with him for a few days, she started to respect him. In a way, she could even consider themselves as friends. _No wonder, father trusts him._

Ryuuji didn't mind that she thought that way. Actually he expected it. He knew that she was already feeling unsecure about her relationship with Makoto because of the childhood "friend" so he wanted to help. If keeping the fact that they lived together a secret lessened Kotonoha's worries, he would gladly do it. He didn't want to burden her any further.

"Thank you Ryuuji-kun." _Geez, what was I worried about? I don't think Ryuuji-kun would have any reason to do that… I should be glad that we have more help for the student council._ They continued their journey home together while in his mind, Ryuuji secretly leaped for joy. This was a great opportunity for him to get closer to her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Notes:** Sorry it's been so long! I'm a senior in college planning to graduate soon and so I've been busy with exams and stuff. In case you're wondering, no I'm not majoring in English… I decided to write this purely for fun so no hard feelings if I can't give you what you want…

Chapter Five: Distances

Sunday had arrived.

Kotonoha woke up early to prepare for her date with Makoto. She was nervous but also excited about her second date. It had been a couple weeks since their first date together at Sakakino hills and since Kotonoha was preoccupied with arrangements regarding the Spring Festival, there was barely time for them to be together outside of school. She was worried that her relationship with Makoto would fall apart, but this date was the perfect opportunity for them to develop their relationship even further.

…Or so she thought.

After grooming herself, she needed to decide what to wear. Various outfits were laid across her bed as she scrutinized them carefully.

_Hmm…what should I wear to this date? Should I go with a dress or should I wear separates? If I wear a dress….I might show too much skin…and father would disapprove since he thinks all boys are wolves…_ After much consideration, she decided to go along with a mid-length skirt and a short-sleeved top with a small bow at the neckline.

With her mind made up, Kotonoha went downstairs to eat something before heading out to the pre-arranged location. She noticed that the kitchen was empty and Ryuuji was nowhere in sight. On the dining table was breakfast he made before he left and a note that was addressed to her.

_So Kokoro is out with her friends and Ryuuji-kun is at work? That was thoughtful of him to let me know…_ After reading the note he left, Kotonoha took the miso soup, rice, and grilled fish and reheated all of them. Then, she sat down at the table with her hot food and began to eat it by first drinking the soup then eating the rice with the fish. When she finished, she washed the dishes and put them away. She then grabbed her purse and keys and headed out the door to train station, locking it on her way out.

**XXX**

Makoto woke up in a stupor, casually glancing at his clock. It was half an hour before eleven. He remembered arranging to meet with Kotonoha at eleven at the movie theaters. It would take him time to get ready and he didn't factor the time it took to ride the train to the theaters. _Oh…shit…I'm gonna be late if I don't hurry._ He rushed to the bathroom to groom himself and then ran back to his room to get dressed. With little time left, he quickly got dressed in blue jeans and a modest-looking shirt then he grabbed a piece of toast on his way out the door. He rushed to the nearest train station, hoping that he wasn't extremely late. _Wait for me, Kotonoha, I'm on my way._

**XXX**

Kotonoha had arrived at the movie theaters slightly early and was silently waiting for Makoto near the ticket booth. She quickly glanced at the time displayed on her cell phone and sighed internally. _Makoto-kun is late….he couldn't have forgotten about our date right? I'm sure he's just running a bit late…_

Ten minutes later she saw Makoto running towards her with concern plastered all over his face.

"… Kotonoha! I'm so sorry I'm late!" It was the first few coherent sentences that came out of Makoto's mouth after he stopped in front of her with his upper torso bent forward as his mouth panted with labored breaths.

"Did you wait long?"

Kotonoha shook her head and smiled slightly.

"I-I just got here." _I memorized those lines perfectly!_

Kotonoha read several books on date etiquette a few days ago. She studied them to the point where she could reiterate the lines girls were suppose to say during each situation on a date.

"Really? Well anyway, let's hurry. The movie will start soon." After he recovered from his somewhat laborious exercise, Makoto turned towards the movie theater where the box office was.

Makoto offered to pay for both their tickets, remembering the advice he read from a date magazine on how guys should act with their girlfriends.

Kotonoha tried to protest against his gesture, but Makoto stubbornly refused to budge on the issue. Unable to change his mind, Kotonoha relented and offered her sincere thanks to Makoto as he purchased the tickets from the box office and handed one of the tickets to her. _Makoto-kun is so sweet, I am so glad that I chose to go out with him._

When both of them each held a ticket, they walked into the theater, with Makoto leading the way. He was too distracted to pay attention to the movie ticket he bought; it was not the type of movie he would normally watch on his own….

**XXX**

A certain silver-haired individual restlessly moved his hand to scribble what was seen as his signature on yet another important document. Once it was signed, the pen stopped moving. Approaching his limit, the young man leaned back in his over-sized executive chair as he threw back his arms in frustration and blew out a puff of air.

_This is so boring! Can't anything get done around here without my direct supervision?_ Ryuuji posed the question in his mind, not purposely seeking an answer. There was no one nearby even if he voiced his question aloud because he was all alone in his office, located on the highest floor of one of the tallest buildings in the local area. Dressed in professional attire with suit and tie, no one would think twice that he worked here even if he did seem a little too young for his current position. However he had earned it. He had the knack for a working executive and he studied diligently under the tutors his father had hired in order to acquire the position he currently held.

There was just one problem.

Everyone was reluctant to make decisions without his formal approval even when he had specifically stated that his right hand man, Kei could issue commands in his stead.

Hence, the reason why Ryuuji was currently glued to his seat, furiously scanning over various documents and scribbling away his signature, no one had listened to his instructions.

If one could get things done by sighing in frustration, he would be done by now. He spent countless hours this morning going to meetings and when he came back to his office, there was a pile of paperwork sitting on his desk. It seemed endless as he worked without rest, plowing through it.

_So much for leaving early…. At this rate, I won't be able to pick up Kokoro today from her friends' house like I said I would… and Kotonoha's on her date, so I doubt she has time to pick her up either…._

_Kotonoha's date…_ The moment Kotonoha's name registered in his mind, Ryuuji felt a tinge of pain in his heart as he remembered who she was with and what she was doing today.

_A date with him…_ His thoughts echoed in his mind as he couldn't help himself but wallow in self despair. He now hunched over his desk, his head barely supported by the tips of his fingers as he closed his eyes in turmoil.

_Kotonoha is with Itou… not me… but him…_ The pain in his heart grew as he thought about how the one person he cherished the most was spending time with one who was not worthy of her, one who took her for granted, not seeing how precious she truly was.

Someone briefly knocked on his door, causing him to jerk his head upright, quickly dispelling whatever thoughts he had earlier. Ryuuji regained his focus and composure before addressing the door. When he spoke, his voice seemed like it belonged to one who was Chief Executive Officer of Juda Corporation, instead of one who was worried that his most cherished individual was leaving him for another.

"The door is unlocked. You may come in." Ryuuji continued to immerse himself into the paperwork stacked upon his desk, trying to avoid thinking about Kotonoha and her date.

As the door was slowly pushed opened, his personal attendant, Kei, stepped inside his office. Like Ryuuji, he too was dressed in formal attire. He had black short hair and a cheerful looking face. Anyone would mistake him for Ryuuji's age if they didn't ask. However, Kei's brown eyes showed that he had the maturity of those of his age, the conviction and confidence of someone who had seen much and endured much. Kei served Ryuuji ever since he was able to walk and talk, and to Ryuuji, Kei was more than just a servant; he was almost like a brother or a best friend.

After stepping in, Kei slowly closed the door behind him and briskly approached his desk, showing concern on his face.

"Ryuuji-sama, you've been working hard all day. You should take a break."

"It's nothing, I'm perfectly fine. There's too much to do, Kei. I can't let these documents be postponed any further. Nothing will get done if I don't sign these." Ryuuji didn't look up as he replied with his head fixed where it currently was, the only movement coming from his hand and pen as it glided back and forth, bleeding away on the papers below it.

As Kei watched, he could see that Ryuuji was working furiously to keep himself distracted as if he couldn't afford to be bothered by what was lingering on his mind. _He's working too hard… He's usually this dedicated…but it seems like he's even more so today than others…_

"Since you insist working like this, I will go prepare something for you to drink to revitalize your energy." Shaking his head softly, Kei walks away from Ryuuji's desk with a proud grin on his face. _So stubborn…unwilling to admit when he is tired…_

This was the youth, Kei watched over for several years. He was stubborn, rough, arrogant but also extremely dedicated and hard-working. At first glance, anyone would see his faults and pre-judge him on those areas but if one observed him close enough, they could see that no matter what anyone said about him, he would still do what he decided best.

**XXX**

Kei came back in a few moments with a steaming cup of tea and set it on Ryuuji's desk, far away from the documents he was looking over.

"Ryuuji-sama, it's time to take a break. Please drink this; it's more beneficial than the coffee you have been drinking all morning."

Glancing up from the pile of documents, Ryuuji stretched his arms.

"Thanks Kei. I'll drink it after a few more."

Kei made an expression that showed he wasn't going to relent this time. He knew that Ryuuji hadn't taken a break since this morning and now it was late in the afternoon.

"Ryuuji-sama! Please keep in mind of your health! If you keep this up, I might have to inform your father that you are unsuitable for this job!" Kei sternly lectured.

_I hate it when he brings up father! I can do this job and if father takes it away from me then how can I prove it to him that I am more than capable of succeeding him?_ Ryuuji stops writing and glares at Kei.

Kei adamantly stares back, refusing to yield when it's a matter concerning his young master's well-being.

"Alright, alright. It wouldn't hurt to take a small break." Ryuuji put his pen and documents down and gently picked up the cup of tea. As he took a sip, Kei casually brought up a topic.

"By the way, Ryuuji-sama, how was your enrollment at your school? Did everything proceed smoothly?"

Swallowing the bitter tea slowly, Ryuuji started to reply. _Things that are healthy usually don't taste good….ugh…_

"There were no problems. Thanks for all your help, Kei. It was good to see Kotonoha again though." Ryuuji paused as he remembered how Kotonoha failed to recognize him on his first day of school. _She forgot about me… was it really that long, Kotonoha?_

Kei noticed how his eyes darkened at the mention of the young woman. _They were childhood playmates… shouldn't he be happy to see her again? _

"Kotonoha-sama is also enrolled at your school, Ryuuji-sama? Surely, you must be extremely happy…?"

Kei noticed that his young master stopped drinking and his grip on the tea cup tightened. _Maybe she didn't remember him? That must be a shock… she was one of few people he cared for…_

….

Ryuuji's gaze was firmly settled on the ground.

"Or… maybe she had forgotten about you? Is that the case…Ryuuji-sama?"

Ryuuji choked as he tried to disagree to Kei's statement while also swallowing his tea. _How did he-?_

_So it's true…_Kei's eyes twinkled in mischief as he continued. "Oh poor Ryuuji-sama, to be forgotten by the girl who resides firmly in your heart…is that the reason why you are so unhappy lately?"

Ryuuji's face reddened as he scowled at Kei for being right. "What! What do you know? I thought that after all the time we played as kids; she would at least remember my face even if she forgot my name… But she acts as if we are strangers!" _I'm just a stranger to her now… a stranger who happens to live in the same house as her… One who watches on the sidelines as another takes her away from me…_

_Ah-ha! I knew he couldn't hide it!_ Kei thought to himself as he listened to his young attendee express his deepest concern.

"So I was right? Ryuuji-sama, when it comes to company affairs, no one can do a better job than you, but why is it that when it comes to love you are so dismal?" Kei shakes his head in exasperation as he places his hand on Ryuuji's shoulder, demonstrating his heartfelt sympathy.

"If you like her so much, why don't you win her over, Ryuuji-sama? With your looks and your current reputation, no woman can resist you…." Ryuuji shakes his head slowly.

"I don't want a woman who would just love me for my wealth and looks, Kei. Kotonoha is different, she was always special to me and that's why I can't let go of her. I am sick and tired of the way the people in this company look at me. It's as if all they see in me is their next promotion, their faces look so fake when they smile at me."

_I was just kidding, who knew that he thought about this so deeply? Did he forget that I was well aware of his feelings towards Kotonoha-sama when they were kids?_ Kei thought to himself as he continued to listen to his young master pour his heart out.

Not aware of what Kei was thinking, Ryuuji continued.

"To put it simply, they are dolls who move how they think would make me happy. They don't treat me as a person. I couldn't bear it if Kotonoha looked at me the same way. Besides, she currently has a boyfriend and it seems like she's happy with him, even though she can't see what he's really like…" Ryuuji placed his cup on his desk and clasped his hands together with his head looking at the floor.

He then continued, his voice becoming barely a whisper. "If she's happy then shouldn't I support her…?" _But what if her vision of happiness is just an illusion? Will she really be happy by being with him? _

Standing over him is Kei, at his side. As he listened to Ryuuji, he noticed how the atmosphere had changed around him. Ryuuji looked very alone, sitting hunched over in his chair, like a child lost in the dark with no one to search for him.

Kneeling down beside him, Kei looks at him and states with conviction, "I will forever stay by your side, Ryuuji-sama."

Glancing back at Kei, Ryuuji retorts. "Of course, you will serve me until I dismiss you from your service! Don't think that you're going to retire early!"

Chuckling to himself, Kei gets up and retrieves the tea cup from Ryuuji's desk, leaving Ryuuji to finish up the rest of his work.

Ryuuji returns his attention to his work, realizing that he showed his one of his major weaknesses to another person just a moment ago. _It's okay, I trust him. What would I do without you Kei?_ Refusing to answer that, Ryuuji finishes his last set of paperwork, then turning to his laptop and starts typing up his report. _I hope I can finish this in time…_

**XXX **

Sitting in one of the middle rows of the movie theater, Makoto is frozen in fear as the large screen in front of him displays another scene of one of most reputable horror films in town. His hand grips the armrests near his seat as he attempts to calm himself while watching the main character slowly ascend the stairs of a haunted house, unaware that the house is haunted by a supernatural being. _Calm down Makoto! You're a guy so you have to be brave! Kotonoha wanted to watch this movie, but why is it horror!_

He glanced over to his left and noticed that Kotonoha was entirely focused on the movie. One of her hands was also on an armrest located near his left hand. _Come to think of it….we still haven't held hands yet…slowly…reach over and touch her hand…_

Makoto's hand moved carefully and brushed Kotonoha's hand. Surprised, Kotonoha jerks her hand away in fear while Makoto whispers an apology. Sighing to himself, Makoto pulls back. _She's always so afraid, will we ever move forward? We're dating right?_

Makoto gave up trying to hold her hand during the rest of the movie. _Why can't I hold her hand? Isn't this a couple's thing to do? Maybe I should ask Sekai about this…_

Kotonoha's eyes focused back on the movie after Makoto attempted to touch her hand. Instinctively, she moved her hand away, but after doing so, she wanted to apologize for her rude behavior. She could see that he was disappointed by her gesture, but she couldn't tell him that she still had difficulty touching another man's hand. _I'm so sorry Makoto-kun, I'll try harder! I promise!_

**XXX**

After leaving the theaters, Makoto and Kotonoha browsed through the shops; as students, they didn't have much to spend but windows shopping was always an option. Many of the shops that they stopped by were bookstores, Kotonoha wanted to search if there were any volumes of the series she was reading by a particular author.

Makoto stood by and watch as Kotonoha walked through the aisles, searching for novels that she would be interested in. _She looks so happy…._

Kotonoha could barely contain her excitement. She looked like a kid in a candy store, her eyes sparkled as she glanced through the various titles located on the shelves and titles priced half-off in the bargain bins…

After a while or so, she noticed that Makoto looked bored while standing in the middle of the store. She knew that books didn't interest him as much as her, but it was considerate of him to allow her to decide where to go on this date even if they were mostly bookstores. _Where would Makoto want to go? I feel bad making him come with me into bookstores if he's not interested…_

Composing herself, she walked over to Makoto. "Sorry Makoto-kun, you must think this is boring right? Is there anywhere you would like to go?"

Out of politeness, Makoto replied, "It's okay Kotonoha, I'm fine. I know you like bookstores so…" Makoto shrugged his shoulders, trying to show that he didn't really care if they went anywhere else.

Thanking him for his generosity, Kotonoha went back to perusing through the bookshelves as Makoto stayed where he was, waiting for her to finish looking.

He sighed internally. _I wonder if there are any new games out that I might like… I don't think Kotonoha is the type of person to play games…_

**XXX**

"I'm finally DONE!" Ryuuji dropped his pen onto his desk and abruptly closed the lid of his laptop. It took him almost half the day, but his work was finally over…for now. He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms, trying to loosen up his shoulder and back muscles. _I guess I should head over to pick up Kokoro now, I hope that she had fun at her friend's house and is ready to leave…_

"Thank you for all your hard work, Ryuuji-sama." Kei congratulated him as he tidied up the rest of the documents in their respective folders in preparation for tomorrow's distribution.

"Thanks Kei, I couldn't have finished without your encouragement. Can you finish up the rest? I need to go."

Kei nodded, aware that Ryuuji had other responsibilities to deal with.

Ryuuji then left the room, heading towards the nearest restroom to change his appearance. He always had a change of clothes in his office so that he could change before leaving the building; he needed to maintain the secrecy of Juda Corporation's leadership, no one needed to know that the one in charge was actually him, instead of the board of directors shown in the news. He discarded the suit and slacks and dressed in a casual navy blazer and black jeans. After scrutinizing himself carefully in the mirror, he was satisfied with his appearance and left the corporate building, fully aware of the curious onlookers. They just assumed that he was just another son of one of professionals working at Juda, here to visit his father.

That was more or less one of the ways he wanted them to think.

**XXX**

The date was slowly coming to an end.

Kotonoha and Makoto walked side by side, barely touching each other as they headed towards the nearest train station where they had to go their separate ways.

As they walked, Makoto was sorely tempted to try and hold Kotonoha's hand again but her hands were firmly residing on her shoulder strap and tote bag. There was no way he could hold her hand. _Man…. Are all girls like this? Why won't she hold hands with me? Doesn't she like me?_

Kotonoha noticed the slight glances Makoto was giving, most of the time he was staring at her hands. _Why is he staring at my hands? Could it be that he wants to hold hands?_ When Makoto noticed that Kotonoha saw him staring at her hands, he jerked his attention back to the street in front of him. Makoto didn't want to force Kotonoha to hold hands with him, but he felt that they should at least progress this much since it was their second date. It didn't occur to him that Kotonoha was much different from other girls and that he would have to take it slow, many of the dating guides he read informed him that holding hands was one of the early stages of a relationship and many girls would be willing to do at least that much.

So why was it that Kotonoha didn't want to?

The more Makoto thought about it, the more the notion baffled him.

When they arrived at the train station and stood together waiting for the next oncoming train, Makoto was wondering how they should end their date. _Would she be okay if I kissed her? Or is that too forward? But the guide said that a girl expects a guy to end the date properly and by ending the date properly, the girl might look forward to another date…_

Makoto was conflicted with his internal thoughts, causing his palms to sweat. While Kotonoha was unaware of what was going through Makoto's mind. She stood patiently at his side, just waiting for the speaker to announce the next train for her to get home.

**XXX**

Ryujji made plans to take the train to pick Kokoro up from her friends' house and he when arrived at the train station, he didn't expect to see Kotonoha there.

When he turned around the corner and glimpsed the silhouette of her back, he instantly knew it was her and he wanted to call out to her. His pace quickened as he wanted to get closer to her.

But then he saw that she was not alone…

He saw Makoto standing right beside her and abruptly stopped. _So the date's not over yet…but it looks like Kotonoha is heading home…_

He contemplated whether or not he should greet them. But before he could make a decision, a train pulled over at their station, one that Kotonoha was waiting for.

**XXX**

As soon as the train pulled in, Kotonoha took a step towards the doors of the opening train then turned around so that she was facing Makoto in order to say good-bye.

The next few moments surprised her.

When Kotonoha turned around such that she was facing directly towards Makoto, Makoto then made up his mind to try to kiss her. _Here goes…_ He placed his hands on Kotonoha's shoulders, to her surprise, and pulled her close with his lips puckering towards her face.

_Wait Makoto-kun! It's too sudden and I'm not prepared for this!_ Kotonoha thought to herself as Makoto's lips glided forward in slow motion, targeting Kotonoha's own lips.

**Whap!**

Makoto's lips were abruptly stopped in place by Kotonoha's hands, both of palm-faced upwards on Makoto's lips in an x-shape, blocking his lips from reaching her face. The gesture startled Makoto. _Again? Why did she stop me?_

Kotonoha shifted her eyes away from Makoto's face as she tried to explain to him why she did what she just did. "I-I'm so sorry Makoto-kun, i-it's just that it was so sudden so I didn't know want to do. I don't feel prepared for it yet, but I didn't have time to tell you…so…I…"

She gently removed her hands from Makoto's face and Makoto was now free to speak. He tried to hide the frustration in his voice as he replied in a nonchalant and cheerful manner. "Heh, no worries… Kotonoha. I'm sorry for forcing you…"

Kotonoha smiled timidly and gently shook her head to show that she disagreed with what he said earlier…She felt that she should have been the one apologizing since she used her hands to stop him from kissing her. Murmuring one last "sorry" Kotonoha turned around one final time and entered the doors of her train, missing the expression that was openly displayed on Makoto's face. It was a mixture of frustration and pain that his girlfriend refused any intimate contact with him today even though it was their date. For him, it was an insult; shrugging it off, Makoto boarded his own train and went home.

However he wasn't the only one in pain…

**XXX**

From Ryuuji's point of view, it looked like Makoto and Kotonoha shared a kiss before she hopped onto her train. Anyone could have easily mistaken the situation as a kiss: Kotonoha was facing Makoto directly and her face was hidden behind Makoto's face with Makoto's hands on her shoulders pulling her into him… Besides, when Kotonoha turned and faced Makoto, Ryuuji couldn't see her clearly since Makoto's stature blocked his view from seeing what actually happened.

Ryuuji curled his hands into fists, trying to suppress the mixture of emotions that were rushing through him. _Kotonoha….you….normally you're afraid of men, yet you were willing to kiss him! Does that mean…you can't be comfortable around other men…? Is there no hope for me then…?_

As he clenched his fists tighter, he felt his heart beat faster, causing a rush of adrenaline that seemed to numb his pain and clear his mind. Slowly letting go of the pain that was crushing his heart, he made up his minds. _Kotonoha…if you're happy….then I'll be happy knowing that you're happy…_ With his conviction set, Ryuuji proceeded to the center of the station to look for the one he needed, when he sensed a pair of eyes on him. He looked around and found that barely 50 feet away from him to his right was Sekai Saionji, staring at him with a knowing smirk.

Ryuuji had only two words in his mind as he realized that she had the time to observe his reaction to the scene that played out earlier.

_She knows…_


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Notes**: Sorry for the wait guys. I had somewhat of a writer's block and I had to rethink how I was going to move the plot forward. I plan on finishing this story eventually so please bear with me. It's for my enjoyment as well as yours.

Chapter Six: Bonds

Makoto wasn't the only one with plans that Sunday. Sekai was looking forward to hanging out with her small group of friends at Mos burger and so when she got off the train and proceeded to leave the station, she didn't expect Makoto to be there. At least not with Kotonoha, even though she knew they were dating.

Makoto didn't have the guts to ask his so called girlfriend for a date right?

If so, then why was he standing in front of a black haired girl who looked distinctly similar to the one who he bravely blurted his confession to?

And what was he doing? Was he giving her a goodbye kiss?

….

_This is not happening._

Sekai's mind kept on rejecting the fact that Makoto was getting closer to the one he held a crush on for the longest time. She thought she knew him best and that the relationship would be one of his minor flings. Soon he would come back to her, complaining that he wasn't enjoying his high school love life to the fullest. Then she would cheerfully smile to him and casually bring up the fact that if he was that desperate, she could consider dating him for awhile.

Makoto would then feign his annoyance and joke that he could never keep up with her if he dated her.

Those moments were the minor joys in her everyday school life. Sekai wouldn't admit it so openly but she secretly wanted to stay at his side. She didn't know how Makoto felt about her though.

So what went wrong? Why was Makoto getting closer and closer to Katsura-san? Why was he no longer staying by her side?

The more Sekai thought about it, the more her heart ached. She stood there quietly in the middle of the train station among the busy and distracted crowd of people. She clenched the hem of her shorts, closed her eyes briefly to calm herself and turned around to walk away from the scene.

Fate has a funny way of playing around with people.

Another surprise awaited her.

Standing no less than fifty feet across from her was the student that recently transferred to her school.

There was no doubt about it.

She recognized that silver hair and those green eyes that held an intense gaze to whomever they were directed towards.

_What is he doing here?_

As she scrutinized his appearance more carefully, she thought something was a bit off. He stood rigid and stiff as if he couldn't move from that spot. His posture was no longer expressing the confidence she felt from him on the first day she bumped into him with Makoto and Taisuke.

Out of curiosity, Sekai followed his gaze and it led to the exact same scene she was trying to avert her eyes from. Looking back and forth, she made the connection even if it sounded absurd. _Him and Katsura-san? Is that even possible? But…_

She saw how his normally stoic mask slip for a second while he was silently observing Makoto and Kotonoha. Ryuuji's eyes softened and winced in pain when he saw the brief intimate interaction between Kotonoha and Makoto. It was for a moment, but she was sure.

_No way!_

Then as she was staring at his reaction with an almost profound realization, she saw him tense up again and look directly at her. His porcelain mask was put back on and it was as if he felt nothing from what he just witnessed earlier.

Unable to contain her excitement at the knowledge she just acquired, she walked towards him with a knowing smirk on her lips.

**XXX**

_She knows…._

_Now what? _

Ryuuji regained his composure and carefully analyzed the situation. If this girl found out that he had feelings for Kotonoha, how would she use this to her advantage? He had an inkling of her situation. She was a childhood friend of Makoto Itou and it was probably safe to assume she had a close bond to that guy.

If she questioned his relationship to Kotonoha, he wouldn't have an answer, not one that would avoid the situation that he was in anyways…

Sekai was now standing right beside him to his left. She feigned her surprise at her most recent realization.

"Oh wow, so the infamous foreigner is **human** after all. You sure have high standards, Hyouma-kun. Who would have thought that our school's most sought after beauty is the one to melt your heart?" Her statements were expressed in a small whisper as if she was voicing his hidden thoughts.

Ryuuji did his best not to take the bait, but he couldn't help but stiffen at her words.

He replied with a curt response. "So what? It's none of your business who I have feelings for, is it?"

She quickly got to the point.

"Is this why you bumped into Makoto-kun the other day?"

"It was an accident." _Yes, so what?_

"Really? One would think that was on purpose." Sekai tilted her head to the side, pretending to think about the statement.

"What's your point?" Ryuuji continued, annoyed that she was interrogating him.

"Oh, nothing really. It's just that **I** helped Katsura-san get together with Makoto-kun and if I helped them get together, **I** can also separate them." Sekai continues in her playful manner.

"You wouldn't." _You manipulative bitch. I guess similar people flock together. Itou-kun is an arrogant bastard and his childhood friend is a cunning woman who hides behind her smile._

"I could." Sekai emphasized again.

"You **wouldn't**, Itou-kun is happy with Katsura-san and there's no way you would sabotage their relationship unless you would want to hurt Itou-kun as well. If you did and he found out, he would never forgive you. And then, you would never have a chance with him."

"You're absolutely right! Since we're both in the same situation, why don't we help each other out?" Her voice is upbeat and friendly, trying to convince Ryuuji that she bears him no ill will.

Ryuuji flatly refused. "No, thanks. I don't need your help."

"Is that so?" Sekai left it at that and walked past him, not even bothering to say good-bye.

_I better watch out for her, she's not your average cheerful girl…_

**XXX**

"EH? Kokoro-chan, you have an onii-chan now? No way!" A young girl around the age of Kokoro exclaimed as she continued to listen to her friend Kokoro brag about the latest addition of her family.

"It's true! He's a really nice onii-chan, you know!" Kokoro adamantly blurted out, with her two fists clenched out in front of her.

"Who is he and how is he related to your family?" Her friend with small glasses and two braided pigtails countered. Her curiosity was killing her and she just had to ask.

"Um… I'm not too sure, but all I know is that he used to live next door when he was around our age. Oh and he moved away around that time too!"

"E-eeeeh! It sounds like your making things up, Kokoro-chan…"

"It's true! What can I do to make you believe me?"

"I won't believe it until I see him!" The little girl with braids retorted with her arms crossed over her chest. Kokoro was known for blowing things out of proportions.

"Geez Uzuki-chan, why won't you believe me!" Kokoro exclaimed as she grabbed a cookie from the small table in front of her and proceeded to munch on it as she leaned back into the couch she was sitting on.

As if she could just randomly summon her Ryuuji-niichan out of thin air!

Kokoro now looked around her friend's house as she realized that it was getting late. When she first arrived at Uzuki-chan's house, there was one other friend as well but then they had to leave early for piano lessons. Then she and Uzuki-chan started to talk about their older sisters and how they are both dating when the issue of guys was brought up. Uzuki-chan was complaining about how her sister's boyfriend prevented her from spending time with her sister and how boyfriends are a pain to deal with. Then Kokoro countered that she knows an onii-chan who would be the perfect boyfriend, or at least in her eyes. He showered her with attention and made meals for her.

Uzuki-chan wouldn't hear of it. She heard the description of this so-called "onii-chan" and didn't believe that the described person would be so nice and caring.

Puh-lease! A silver-haired individual with intense green eyes who barely wears his uniform correctly is gentle and caring?

She sipped her tea that was sitting out on the small table in front of her when she heard the doorbell ring.

**XXX**

"Oh my, who might you be?" Uzuki's mother opened the door when she heard the doorbell rang, but she didn't expect to lay eyes on a silver-haired male with green eyes.

"Uh, sorry to intrude your home so late." Ryuuji dipped his head slightly in apology. "But I'm here to pick up Kokoro-chan."

"Just one moment, please come in."

"Thank you very much." Ryuuji stepped in and waited near the doorway.

**XXX**

"Kokoro-chan, there's an onii-chan waiting for you near the door. Do you know him?" Uzuki-chan's mother walked into the living room with her voice full of concern.

"Does he have silver hair? And green eyes?" Kokoro asked.

She nodded.

"Yay! It's Ryuuji-niichan! He came to pick me up!" Kokoro hopped off the couch she was sitting on and started to head over to the door.

"Oh wait, Uzuki-chan, do you still want to meet him?"

Uzuki-chan who was still drinking her tea almost choked. "E-eeeeeh? You mean he's real!"

"Geez Uzuki-chan, do you really think I was kidding this whole time?" Kokoro expressed a small sigh in frustration.

Not waiting for her answer, Kokoro grabbed her friend's hand and jerked her in the right direction.

"Come-on, Uzuki-chan! I'm sure you'll like him!"

"W-wait Kokoro-chan! S-slow down!" Uzuki-chan shouted as she was pulled by her very enthusiastic friend.

**XXX**

**This** was the kind, onii-chan that Kokoro-chan mentioned? He was nothing what Uzuki-chan expected and honestly he looked downright intimidating. He looked like those bullies with piercings and dyed hair, minus the piercings.

Uzuki-chan protectively stood in front of her friend. "Who are you? Are you really Kokoro-chan's onii-chan?"

Ryuuji was not surprised that the little girl didn't believe him. _Kokoro-chan has such a good friend._ He put on his best friendly smile, crouched such that he was seeing to her eye-level and replied.

"Yep, I am the one she calls onii-chan. Although I didn't ask her to since I didn't do anything to deserve to be called onii-chan."

"Uzuki-chan! I told you so!" Kokoro casually moved Uzuki-chan's protective arms out of the way and jumped into Ryuuji's arms as a greeting.

"Ryuuji-niichan! Thank you for picking me up!"

"Oof. That's a strong tackle you have, Kokoro-chan." He almost doubled over when she jumped into him.

When Ryuuji regained his balance in his crouched state, he gently patted Kokoro's head. "Ready to go home?"

"Yep! I can't wait to eat your cooking, Ryuuji-niichan!" Kokoro shouted with her small fist in the air.

"Ok. It was nice to meet you Uzuki-chan and thank you for having Kokoro over. Thank you as well Mm'am." Ryuuji gently touched Uzuki-chan's shoulder in response and bowed slightly to her mother.

Before Ryuuji turned to leave, Uzuki-chan felt guilty about her reaction earlier.

"UM….Ryuuji-niichan… SORRY… about earlier…"

Ryuuji smiled. This girl had more courage than she looked. Most people avoided him in case they carelessly made him angry and yet this girl managed to stand up to him out front. "Don't worry about it. See you next time!"

"Ok!"

"Oh my, feel free to come again, Kokoro-chan! You're always welcome."

"Thank you Auntie!"

**XXX**

On the way home, Kokoro was chatting away endlessly, telling her respected onii-chan all the things that she discussed with her friends when he was away.

She was really into it too, not just giving emotions to her statements and stories but actions as well. She mimicked the tone of her friends when she told Ryuuji how they reacted to her statements and the faces they made.

Ryuuji just listened silently as he walked beside her. Giving his slight smiles and brief nods.

He was listening and paying attention but his heart wasn't into it. Especially since he was concerned about how Kotonoha and Makoto's relationship was progressing.

Even though he told himself that he could let go knowing that Kotonoha was happy, he wasn't sure if he really could. Words could not express how important she was to him.

When he was abroad, he would always wonder if she was living happily like she deserved to be. He looked forward to the day when he could see her smiles again.

Her smiles had saved him.

Full of warmth and kindness, they had saved him from straying, from a path that was littered with bloodshed.

Now that Ryuuji had returned even if it was for a brief while, he wanted to repay her.

He wanted to stay by her side and protect her.

However, it seems like someone has taken up his place. Kotonoha had a boyfriend now and she seemed happy with him.

He was no longer needed.

Ryuuji was now brooding about his predicament. A part of him was saddened that Kotonoha was seeing another while the other part of him sincerely wanted her to be happy even at the cost of his happiness.

_You are you. Everyone is different._

Why were his father's words coming back to him? His father had lectured him harshly for trying to copy his way of doing things instead of pursuing what he was actually interested in. His father wanted him to be his own person and not be copy of someone else even if they had the best interests at heart.

_You are you. Everyone is different._

The words continued to echo deep inside Ryuuji's thoughts. Somehow they help lift the heavy burden that was weighing in his heart.

_Even if she never returns my feelings, I can still be her friend. Even if she doesn't consider me a friend, I can at least be there for her and support her…._

After chatting away for half an hour and not getting any responses from her Ryuuji-niichan except for some nods and smiles, Kokoro turns around. She notices that he is deep in thought, looking away in the distance with an odd look in his eyes. At first, she thought she saw some uncertainty, but now it looked like he thought it through.

"Ryuuji-niichan?" Kokoro asked full of concern for the brother she looked up to.

"Hmm?"

"Is something wrong?"

"No… I just made up my mind about something. Thank you for being concerned about me, Kokoro-chan." He smiled warmly at her.

"Sure Ryuuji-niichan! By the way, what are you making for dinner?"

"Does sukiyaki sound good?"

"Yay! You're awesome Ryuuji-niichan! As I was saying…. Uzuki-chan was like…."

Ryuuji wasn't certain of what would happen later on, but he would remain as Kotonoha's one and only loyal friend.

No matter what happened.

That, he could at least guarantee.

**XXX **

At school the next day, there were some interesting rumors being spread throughout the campus. One of them was that there was a new addition to the student council committee. Another was that that same new member was planning to take over the council. Hence, was the reason he joined.

Ryuuji sneezed. He had a feeling that people were talking about him. Not that he had time to worry about it anyway. Kotonoha brought him before the student council during one of the council meetings and he could feel their eyes on him. He was under scrutiny and the silent treatment gave a atmosphere a tense feeling.

It was a least several minutes until someone decided to speak up.

"So this is the transfer student that I have heard so much about. Hyouma-kun, your reputation precedes you, you know?" One member of the council openly challenged him.

"Is that so? Well I'm sorry that I couldn't meet your expectations. I was wondering how low the student council has become to ask **me** for help." He countered obviously annoyed that Kotonoha was at the council's beck and call. Before they came, the council had said that Kotonoha's attendance was requested immediately and so they had rushed over here. It was obvious that Kotonoha's status here was not very high.

"You bastard, do you how much of an honor it is - ?" One started to reply in anger but was quickly cut off by senior member of the group.

"Enough!" One authoritative voiced silenced the others. Everyone turned to the center of the room.

"Hyouma-kun, are you here to help or to cause trouble?" The person who held the voice curtly asked.

"I'm here to help obviously." _Because no one else in our class would help Kotonoha…_

"Fine. We welcome you to our group, but keep in mind that if you do cause trouble we won't hesitate to remove you."

"Sounds good to me." Ryuuji countered, showing his annoyance at some of the members already.

"You will be assigned to help Katsura-san with her classroom's participation in the upcoming school festival. According to Katsura-san, they have not decided on what they will be doing and we need that finalized so we can proceed with assigning budgets."

"And Katsura-san?"

Kotonoha was staying silent at Ryuuji's side the whole time. "Y-yes?"

"I hope that with the additional help, you can get things done on time?"

"I-I'll do my best." Kotonoha quietly replied, knowing that her class has made it difficult on the other members.

Ryuuji was now irritated at how the other student members were treating Kotonoha. He replied as well even if his tone sounded a little harsh, showing his irritation. "I'll make sure that our class is well prepared for the festival. Just you wait!"

"Let's go Katsura-san." Ryuuji turned to leave. He didn't want to stay any longer, not even for a minute.

"Y-yes! Hyouma-kun!" _Was that his way of defending me?_ Kotonoha followed right behind him.

Kotonoha was left to ponder if Ryuuji could really help her.

**XXX**

"That's it for today, everyone. Don't forget to talk to your class president and your new vice president on the arrangements for the upcoming festival! See you tomorrow! The teacher announced at the end of the day then dismissed everyone and left the classroom.

Everyone in the class started to pack up their belongings, wanting to leave right away even though there were things to discuss as a class. The festival preparations weren't their problems since there was an appointed class president and now an appointed vice president. Everyone had their own things to do and bothered to help plan for the upcoming festival activities.

Kotonoha was aware that there was a lack of eagerness for this even but even so she walked up to the front of the class and tried to gather her classmates' attention. Her feeble voice was ignored.

"U-um…. Everyone… could I have your attention! For the u-um school festival…."

The sound of papers shuffling and books being put away easily blocked out Kotonoha's small plead.

Kotonoha was clearly uncomfortable that everyone was ignoring her. Ryuuji could tell. She stood up near the teacher's lecture podium as she frantically attempted to get her classmates to notice her. No one bothered to listen and she was getting more nervous with every passing minute. She fidgeted and aimlessly looked left and right.

Well aware of her distress, Ryuuji got up from his desk, briskly walked over to the classroom exit and slammed the door. He then pulled up a chair, placed it in front of the exit and then sat in it with his arms crossed in front of him.

The sudden closure of the classroom exit captured everyone's unwanted attention and anger.

"What the hell, Hyouma-san! Why are you blocking the way!"

"I didn't think it was this easy to get your attention even though the Class President was trying hard to do so." Ryuuji replied calmly, aware of what he was doing.

"We want to leave, get out of the way!" The students called out like a mob.

How dare he barricade them in like this?

"You guys are NOT leaving until we figure out the plans for the school festival. We are BEHIND schedule and I'm not going to let this matter drag out any longer. Until we get things figured out, I am NOT letting you guys leave!"

"You can't do that!"

"Oh really? Will you guys fight me then?" Ryuuji challenged, looking up with a smirk on his face.

"Hyouma-kun, stop that! We just need their help for the ideas and the rest we can do on our own! Please don't force our classmates!" Kotonoha lectured. Her voice was finally heard.

Her classmates did a double take. Was she actually trying to lecture the obnoxious Hyouma-san?

"Katsura-san, what is the point of having a class activity if there are only a few people involved with it? I don't know about everyone else, but I'm looking forward to having our activity at the festival! This is an event that is not only limited to the students but to the public as well and this is our way to show that the students care about their school!"

Surprisingly, everyone else in the class agreed with Ryuuji's viewpoint as well. They quickly forgot about their anger.

"He's right, you know." Fellow students murmured their agreement.

"So, are you guys going sit here until the sun goes down or are we going to put this together somehow?" Ryuuji then asked, wanting to get the matter resolved as soon as possible.

Kotonoha couldn't believe it. People in her class were actually helping out this time. It was usually around this time that she would be swamped with all the responsibilities associated with the festival. Not only was she not alone in this, but now it was becoming a group effort.

_Ryuuji-kun, you're amazing. Father was right to put his faith in you. _

The response was unanimous. "What would you have us do then?"

Ryuuji grinned. Things were finally working out in his favor.

"First, let's decide what we want to do as a class…."

**XXX**

Afterwards, Ryuuji didn't have to use that tactic again to get his classmates' attention. Their progress was going smoothly except with the occasional bumps along the road. At first, it seemed like there was a lot to do but after discussing it and breaking it down into minor parts; the tasks were majorly simplified.

He surprised everyone by helping Kotonoha take charge and jumping in when there were issues she couldn't handle. It seemed like the rumors about Ryuuji taking over the student council were false after since he wasn't interested in taking over Kotonoha's role as class president.

As a result, the class was back on track and everyone's opinion of Kotonoha changed as well. They saw how dedicated she was to her work and how understanding she was when things went wrong. Of course, everyone started to look at Ryuuji differently as well. Even though they first viewed him as a delinquent who wasn't capable of doing anything but cause trouble, they were astonished when they saw how easily he adapted to the tasks at hand.

No one would openly admit it though.

People started to depend on him for getting things done or for getting some assistance. Ryuuji was dedicated in making this event happen and the people around him were starting to see it.

The class ultimately decided on a haunted house; there was also a hidden lounge that was being built secretly on the side for the schools' couples. Kotonoha continued to do the planning and organization since she had more experience with such events while Ryuuji helped out with mostly the grunt work.

"Hey, Hyouma-kun where should I put this?" A fellow classmate was carrying a few of the materials needed for the structure of the haunted house.

"Over there." Ryuuji pointed to a corner where other materials were piled. "Do you need some help?"

He shook his head.

"Hyouma-kun! What should we do about costumes?" Another classmate addressed him.

"I'll ask Katsura-san about those. Just focus on decorating the background scenes first. Since our budget is limited we need to maximize the effect of the atmosphere so we don't have to spend much on special effects." Ryuuji found Kotonoha heading off towards the school supplies room and followed behind her.

**XXX**

As Kotonoha was heading towards the storage room, she bumped into Makoto and Sekai. Since they were both in the same class, they were busy working on their class activity together. Somehow they were both nominated as the presiding student representatives for their class. They were casually discussing something which Kotonoha could not hear but they sounded like they were having fun.

Kotonoha felt a little irritated seeing them. Makoto had admitted several times that he and Sekai were just childhood friends yet anyone watching from the sidelines, not knowing their relationship, would guess that they were secretly dating.

They looked like a couple and the more Kotonoha thought about it; the more she doubted herself.

_Makoto looks so happy when he's chatting with Saionji-san and Saionji-san looks the same. When I talk to Makoto-kun does he look the same way as well?_

Was she feeling jealous of Makoto's relationship with Sekai?

The preparations for the school festival made her so busy that she didn't have time to see Makoto after school or during lunch. Kotonoha had apologized on numerous occasions that she couldn't walk home with Makoto. He told her every time that he didn't mind and understood her responsibilities.

What did that mean exactly?

It was frustrating and Kotonoha's last date with Makoto had things even worse. Kotonoha rejected Makoto's attempt at an intimate gesture. She had apologized and he had forgiven her but their relationship didn't progress any further. Kotonoha was worried.

When both they came around the corner, Kotonoha waved her friendly greeting to them.

"M-Makoto-kun! Saionji-san!"

"Oh h-hey, Kotonoha." Makoto was casually joking around with Sekai in their conversation and felt awkward when Kotonoha unintentionally intruded.

"Katsura-san!" Sekai waved back in her usual hyperactive manner.

"Um…" Kotonoha looked timidly at Makoto and then at Sekai. It seemed like she wanted to ask Makoto something in private.

"Did you need something Kotonoha?" Makoto was unaware of her discomfort.

"Um…. C-could…" She started again.

Sekai got the hidden message and took the initiative. "Oh! So that's it!" Her two hands smacked together.

"Huh!" The other two replied synonymously.

"I'll leave you two alone then. Don't take too long!" Sekai walks away with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Geez, Sekai…. What is she doing?" Makoto sounded irritated at how abruptly Sekai left.

"Saionji-san is really kind….She knew I had something to ask you in private…Makoto-kun…"

"Oh really? What is it?"

"Um…. Since we haven't walked home together in so long… could we walk home together today?" Kotonoha asked with her hands clasped together, worried that he would disagree.

"Has it really been that long?" Makoto murmured to himself.

"Eh?" _Did Makoto-kun say something?_

"N-nothing. Sure! Let me finish a few more things and I'll walk home together with you today!"

"Really?"

"Yep, really."

"Thank you Makoto-kun!" Kotonoha replied with a cheerful smile as she excused herself to the storage room.

"Meet me at my classroom later!" Makoto yelled back as he started to walk off in the direction of his classroom.

"Okay!" The two separated after their verbal agreement.

**XXX**

Kotonoha was in the school storage room alone, humming to herself while she looked for the supplies she needed.

When Ryuuji walked in, he noticed that her mood had changed.

"It looks like someone is in a good mood, mind telling me why?" Ryuuji casually asked.

Kotonoha turned around to the sudden visitor. "Oh, Hyouma-kun. Is there something you need?"

_You won't even call me by my first name even if we were alone? Are we not friends, Kotonoha?_ Ryuuji's dark thoughts were brought out from the one weakness inside his heart. He dismissed them quickly before calmly addressing her.

"Actually, our classmates wanted to ask about costumes for the haunted house. Are we buying them or do we have time to make them?"

Kotonoha pulled out the master list she held in her hand, briefly skimmed over it and addressed him. She created it using the data from the years before, highlighting the key tasks that needed to be done.

"Hmm… well there are some costumes in here that we could use… there are also people in our group who volunteered to sew some costumes together if we could somehow get the supplies…."

"We would need to stop by a fabric store…. Or maybe a costume shop to see what types of fabric we would need…" Ryuuji added.

"That's a great idea! I would need someone to go along with me… but I can go alone…" Kotonoha continued, her stream of thought loud enough for anyone close by to hear.

….

"Hyouma-kun?" Kotonoha noticed that he didn't reply to her last statement and was now quietly staring at her.

"Yeah?"

"U-um… is there something wrong with me? You keep staring in my direction." Kotonoha blushed slightly at the attention he was giving her.

"No, nothing is wrong. I noticed that you just talked more than you ever did while in the classroom."

"I did?" _He's right. Why is so easy to talk in front of him when I have trouble speaking in front of others?_

Ryuuji nodded.

"W-well normally in class, no one pays attention to me even if I did say something so I just keep to myself." Kotonoha's voice expressed a tinge of sorrow.

"You shouldn't do that Katsura-san. Everyone has a right to express their ideas, so don't think that you don't." Ryuuji adamantly responded.

"Eh?" Kotonoha couldn't guess Ryuuji's intentions. Were those words of encouragement or did he feel obligated to say them just because he was suppose to take care of her under her father's request?

"Anyway, it's getting late. Don't you have somewhere to go? I bet you have plans right after this. I can handle the rest from here."

"Y-you're right. I do." She hesitated a bit before leaving. "Are you sure you don't need any help, Hyouma-kun?"

Ryuuji nodded again, silently praising himself for changing the subject so quickly.

"I'll take the supplies that are needed from the master list and deposit them in the classroom."

Seeing how anxious she was getting ready to leave, Ryuuji couldn't ask her to stay. "I'll be fine. Go on."

After handing him the master list and pointing out the most important items, Kotonoha left the storage room open and briefly left.

She hurried to get her school bag from the classroom.

_Did you have to look so happy leaving me for your boyfriend Kotonoha?_ Ryuuji smiled sadly to himself as he gathered the necessary supplies, placed them in a nearby box and glanced over the list Kotonoha provided him before lifting the box to his own classroom.

A boyfriend is more important than a friend anyway…

**XXX**

They were going to walk home together!

Kotonoha continued to hum a happy tune as she hurried back to the classroom.

They were finally going to walk home together after what seemed like weeks since their last date at the movies!

After Kotonoha gathered her school bag, she quickly rushed to Makoto's classroom with a skip in her step. She couldn't wait to talk to him about her plans for the school festival…

_Wait for me, Makoto-kun!_

**XXX**

Makoto and Sekai were the primary assistants for their classroom's participation activity.

It was all Sekai's fault.

She originally volunteered to do it herself but then she suggested that Makoto do it as well. Since Sekai proposed, Makoto couldn't refuse. He knew he owed it to her since she did help him with his relationship with Kotonoha.

"Whew… I think this is the last of it." Makoto placed a box filled with flyers and poster paper on a nearby desk for tomorrow's distribution. He then rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms to loosen his muscles. Sekai ended up making him take up most of the grunt work.

"Geez… most guys could do this without working up a sweat… you should toughen up M-a-k-o-t-o-k-u-n." Sekai teased in a sing-a-long voice.

"You barely did anything Sekai so you shouldn't be complaining…" Makoto continued to stretch his arms.

"Urryyaa…How's this for doing something?" Sekai suddenly grabbed Makoto's head in a headlock and dragged him around.

"H-hey Sekai, cut it out. You're going to pull my head off my shoulders!" He lightly tagged Sekai's arm, the gesture for giving up in a wrestling match.

"Did you say something M-a-k-o-t-o-k-u-n?" Sekai pretended to tighten her grip on his head.

"N-Nothing! Now let go of me Sekai!" He continued to follow her as she herded his head around.

"And release!" Sekai released Makoto that he fell backwards from the sudden motion. When he started to fall, he instinctively grabbed the nearest thing, in this case, person, with him as he fell.

THUMP

"That hurt…." Makoto opened his eyes and found Sekai on top of him wincing in pain as well.

"Makoto you idiot. Why did you grab me?" Sekai opened her eyes as well and saw the weird position they were in. She blushed furiously, noticing that she was sitting on top of them.

The two of them knew they weren't alone when they heard the classroom door open…

**XXX**

Kotonoha got to Makoto's classroom as quick as she could and when she opened the door, she saw Sekai on top of Makoto.

Sekai

Was sitting

On top

Of Makoto…

She dropped her school bag.

Sekai and Makoto tried to explain their situation but they couldn't get any words out. Their mouths opened and closed wordlessly without uttering a word.

Words could not express what she felt in those mere seconds as she murmured a quick apology and fled the scene.

**XXX**

"Could you get off of me now?" Makoto asked seriously.

"Ah! Sorry!" Sekai got up and allowed Makoto to get up as well.

"She got the wrong idea because of you…."

Was that anger or concern in his voice?

"Aren't you going to go after her?"

"I-" What was he going to say if he caught up to her? Would she believe him if he said that it was just an accident?

"Go! Before she misunderstands!" Sekai gestured by pointing towards the doorway.

"You're right, thanks Sekai!" Makoto ran after Kotonoha in the direction she left.

"You dummy…." Sekai said to no one in particular. _You can't do anything without me, right Makoto?_

**XXX**

Ryuuji was back in class 1-4 after telling Kotonoha that he would finish up what she left to him. He didn't hold it against her. It was normal that she wanted to spend time with her boyfriend after school and Ryuuji wanted her to be happy.

There were a few students left in the classroom but he told everyone that they could leave since they got most of the planning done for the day. He also thanked them in his before they left to their surprise.

The classroom was very empty since he was the only left now and the silence was slightly unnerving.

What was the point of staying late if Kotonoha had already left?

When he walked to his desk after putting down the supplies, he heard heavy footsteps echoing in the halls. It sounded like someone was running. Harsh steps and the clacking sounds on the tiles with each step, it seemed like whoever was running was in a hurry.

He turned his head towards the open doorway out of curiosity. It was for a moment, but he saw a glimpse of dark violet hair and flowing tears.

Ryuuji had no doubt that it was Kotonoha he saw and he felt uneasy.

_Was she crying?_

**XXX**

Kotonoha Katsura ran.

She didn't know what came over her but the moment she saw Sekai hovering over Makoto in a sitting position, her heart ached.

How could he do this to her?

Was she not enough?

It hurt so much and she wanted to cry.

But she couldn't release her tears in front of others so she ran.

She ran from the scene, and from the school.

Kotonoha was not exceptionally skilled at running but after what seemed like several minutes she did gain some distance and ended up in an area that she was not familiar with. Not looking where she was going, Kotonoha collided with three individuals who were in no hurry heading home.

They had piercings, tattoos and they tolerated no one's authority but their own. Not even the police would bother to deal with them.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" They called out as Kotonoha collided into them and was pushed back from the recoil.

Kotonoha's tears stopped flowing as she noticed her surroundings. She was unfamiliar in this area and there were people looking down on her. She was not alone.

Three men were standing in front of her, observing her. One was bald, had tattoos on his shoulders and was wearing a shirtless top with worn out jeans. His companions had piercings on the ears and on the lower lip. They were both wearing oversized tee-shirts and basketball shorts.

"Check it out, man. I think we hit the jackpot today." The bald individual shouted out, obviously not angry anymore.

"Wanna have some fun?" Another asked as the three of them leered at girl in front of them.

It was like a goddess had dropped into their laps. Long, dark hair, big eyes, slender figure and a busty chest, it was like a dream come true.

Like wolves salivating for meat when they were hungry, they turned their greedy eyes to her.

Meat had arrived.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: A Small Descent

**Author Notes: I can't believe this story reached at least one thousand views! Thanks to everyone for their support! Just a forewarning for the below chapter: it might seem like Kotonoha is a bit OOC but I feel like it's possible for her to act this way. Again, I'm writing this mostly for my enjoyment. I have no idea when I will finish this story. Enjoy!**

Just a few moments ago, Ryuuji glimpsed a girl running down the school corridor with eyes slightly damped with small droplets of clear liquid flowing down her cheeks. If it was anyone else, he couldn't care less but with just one look, he knew that girl was Kotonoha. She had seemed so cheerful earlier. Running off to gather her school bag and leaving him alone in the school storage room to walk home with her self-proclaimed boyfriend.

What had changed in just several minutes?

She seemed frantic, even desperate to flee from whatever was behind her. Whatever it was that harmed her. Ryuuji's uneasiness grew larger the more he dwelled on it and he frowned with distaste written on his face. He couldn't help but worry. It was unusual for him to stand there and think about what he should do when usually he would act upon his feelings and worry about the consequences later.

What was making him hesitate to go off and rush after her? It was along the lines of how their relationship was defined. Did Kotonoha think of him as just a friend and nothing else? To him, she meant more than that, much more yet he had resolved to watch her as she continued to be strung along with Makoto thinking that she was happy with him.

The silver-haired individual in the empty classroom cursed silently to himself. It was no time for him to be hesitating when the girl he cared about ran off and is currently off by herself!

Ryuuji dismissed his gloomy thoughts and took a deep calming breath. He needed to find Kotonoha. He could worry about other things later.

He was just outside his classroom door when he heard another pair of footsteps clamoring on the hallway floor. Not even bothering to turn around to look at who it was, Ryuuji started to walk off in the direction that he saw Kotonoha run off to at a brisk pace. His steps quickened some more as he felt that the issue was urgent.

"Hyouma-kun!" A masculine voice strained with quick breaths called out to him.

He recognized that voice. It was from Makoto Itou, even more reason to ignore him.

"Hey!"

"Wait!"

Eventually Makoto caught up with Ryuuji and grabbed his shoulder. Slightly annoyed, Ryuuji paused and turned around with a scowl on his face.

"What?" His tone was harsh and blunt. It reiterated the fact that he had no time to lose and yet here he was, bothered by someone who was going to waste his time.

Makoto's voice came out in labored breaths. "Did…you…see…. Kotonoha?" He hunched over with his hands on his knees struggling to keep his breathing even.

"No… I thought she was with you." Ryuuji emphasized the word "you" pretty harshly and even Makoto took the hint. _Whenever it is about Kotonoha, this guy seems very protective._ Makoto couldn't help thinking to himself and attempted to reply cautiously. The person before him was potentially dangerous and he didn't want to mess with him.

"She was…but then there was a misunderstanding….and then she ran off…I'm trying to find her so I can explain…."

Ryuuji's eyes narrowed. _He's still hiding something._ "Is this related to you and that Saionji girl?" he asked.

The look of surprise on Makoto's face told Ryuuji everything he needed to know and he turned to leave without hesitation.

"You're wasting my time, Kotonoha headed off in this direction in a rush and I need to –"

Ryuuji was cut off when Makoto sprinted past him with a "thanks" and then took off. He wanted to smack himself. Maybe Kei was right and he was terrible about relationships. He could have found Kotonoha already and here he was playing left and right with his own feelings!

He had a hunch that she would be near the train station, heading home. Trusting his instincts, he took off just as quickly as the young male before him, wanting to find the girl he desperately cared about.

He just hoped that she was safe.

**XXX**

"Hey, didn't you hear me? My buddy just asked you if you wanted to chill out with us." The question was asked with a condescending tone. This was their turf, their territory. Any guys that wanted to join up and hit the ranks could come join their group. Any girl unaccompanied by friends, boyfriends or "lost" in their turf was up for grabs. It was like an unspoken rule on the streets. A different world than what Kotonoha was used to and Kotonoha unintentionally qualified for the latter. It seemed like her luck was still toying with her. First was the scene at school and now this.

She picked herself up from the ground, dusted her uniform off, murmured a quick apology to the three individuals in a small voice and turned to leave.

If the three males were sensible individuals, they would have accepted her meek apology and moved on. However, they were the rulers of this section of town for a reason.

The two guys who wore piercings on their lower lips cut off her escape path. They humored themselves slightly as they thought that this girl might be the best catch of the day yet.

Trembling slightly, Kotonoha chewed her lip as she considered the situation she was in. It did NOT look good. One was behind her and two were in front, enclosing her in a small, tight circle.

Her eyes darted between the three of them and the area behind them. The look in her eyes told them that she wanted to escape and that she was uncomfortable in their presence.

"What's the matter? Did me and my buddies scare you?" The bald individual behind her sneered mockingly.

The long, black haired female in the center of the circle spun around and addressed the apparent leader as calmly as she could. Her fear of men prevented her from doing so however and she became a stuttering mess.

"I-I'm busy and n-not i-interested. S-sorry." Her tone and timid gestures made her appear weak to her audience.

The three of them laughed. It was adorable how she tried to put up a front and brush them off even as she stuttered in fear. She was really cute too. It wouldn't be as fun if she did otherwise. The three males shared the same look in their eyes. They wanted to take it slow and slowly savor the victory when she gave in and gave them what they wanted.

"Didya here that? She said she's busy!"

"Yep."

"Sure did."

"Aw, well if you're really busy then all you have to do is apologize for bumping into me and I'll let it slide this time." As the raven haired beauty looked closer to the leader, she saw that he had several inked tattoos covering his bare, rugged shoulders. She frowned slightly as she heard him earlier. He seemed to be offering a friendly way of letting her out.

"I-I just apologized." She was too nervous to look him straight in the eye and stared at his feet.

She saw his arms move up and down slightly as if he simply shrugged. He then asked his fellow companions for confirmation.

"Didya hear her apologize?"

"Nope."

"Natta."

The individual currently in front of her dropped his friendly façade and became serious. He took a step forward and closed the mere distance between them. Kotonoha was now staring at his shoulder.

"You lied, babe. Time for punishment." His voice took on a huskier tone. The implications were obvious.

She gave them a quizzical look. She had read many dark adult novels and had a hunch but she was hoping that they didn't mean what she thought they meant.

To make it even more obvious, the leader of the two companions leaned forward and whispered in her ear.

"I want you to strip, babe." As soon as she heard his voice in her ear, she jerked her head to the side. His breath was hot and uncomfortable as it tickled her ear.

She protectively covered the collar of her school uniform and shook her head furiously. He chuckled again and decided to "help" her with the task. He gingerly placed his hands where her hands were and gave a small tug, she struggled against him but then he somehow found a place to grip his hands underneath the collar of her uniform.

With another forceful tug, the shirt collar popped open and exposed her bare collarbone as well as the nape of her neck. He licked his lips with eagerness and pulled the girl closer to him using her uniform as a rope. Since she was about half a foot shorter than him, he yanked her up exposing her neck to his face and inhaled deeply. Even though Kotonoha never wore any sort of body fragrance, she smelled deliciously sweet to him. He closed his eyes, breathed in and opened his eyes again. His heartbeat increased with the feeling of smug satisfaction as he grinned.

Kotonoha was held like a puppet dangling in front of him. She felt helpless and afraid but she needed to escape. Her feet were somehow positioned right near his knees so she attempted a full kick to cripple him slightly.

With a large yelp, he slightly tossed her to the side away from his other two companions, not releasing his grip and tearing her uniform some more. He cursed loudly. He was going to be gentle but he changed his mind. The girl wanted to play rough.

His buddies rushed forward to help but he stopped them with his arm. He could take care of this.

When she was tossed aside, Kotonoha couldn't land properly and fell to the ground. She told herself to get up and escape. She needed to get away. The thoughts filled her with strength as she pushed herself up again and attempted to run.

Her opponent was faster though. He grabbed her arm fiercely and cornered her to a nearby wall surrounded with old boxes and other miscellaneous things. She didn't have time to notice what they were. His body pinned hers by weight alone. There was no doubt in her mind that he weighed more than her. She felt like she was suffocating.

"You… bitch…" He panted as he worked his hands on stripping her uniform. The top was partially ripped off in some areas but he wanted to see more skin. His long legs straddled hers and his body was pressing up against her soft, supple body. Kotonoha struggled in protest but he continued to pin her against the wall.

His large, grubby hands grabbed more of the fragile cloth that composed her uniformed and tugged with slightly more force. The material was never meant to be defensive anyway and the result was obvious. A large portion of the cloth came off with a shredding sound. Kotonoha panicked and struggled against her assailant with renewed vigor, wrenching her upper body and arms left and right. Her opponent chuckled as it was futile. He had done this countless times before and none of his victims were able to get way until he was completely done with them. Finally done with getting the bothersome uniform off, he pulled the last remaining particle of cloth and yanked it open with enthusiasm exposing her sheer tank top underneath. He grinned lustfully with his eyes clouded in lust.

_Just a bit more._

**XXX**

Kotonoha swatted his hands away and tried to fight him off, she really did. However, her opponent was much larger than her and his strength outnumbered hers. She felt the wind chill her skin as her uniform was pulled off of her. She unconsciously shivered but not from the wind.

It was from the thought of what was happening to her. She then attempted to scream, to yell, throwing her voice in desperation but no one cared.

No one was coming to her rescue.

Her throat burned as she continued to strain her voice but no one in the nearby area listened. Annoyed at her antics, her rapist slapped her face, the impact causing a loud smacking sound. The force numbed her senses and Kotonoha felt her vision grow hazy and dark. She felt her consciousness slip from the brute force and her feelings of anguish continued in her thoughts.

Help me!

Why is this happening to me?

Someone help me!

Help!

Help me…

Help…

As Kotonoha felt her mind slip into unconsciousness she heard malicious thoughts that couldn't have been her very own. They suggested things she normally wouldn't do, wouldn't have the courage to do because she wasn't brave enough.

_Help you?_

_Why? Isn't Kotonoha Katsura from a wealthy prominent family?_

_Can't she fight her own troubles?_

I'm afraid! They always want to take advantage of me! They always want to hurt me!

Eerie laughter cackled in the background.

_It's because you NEVER try! Have you ever tried fighting back?_

I have! But they're stronger than me!

_You call that small struggle fighting! PATHETIC! When cornered, you should use any weapon you have to fight them off! Your teeth to bite them, your nails to claw them, anything!_

_Anything can be used as a weapon!_

_Anything!_

_Show them!_

_Show them that they should FEAR you!_

_Show them!_

….

….

…

More malicious laugher echoed in the background.

**XXX**

Kotonoha's rapist thought that his victim had stopped struggling. He sighed, his excitement slightly ebbed away. He had hoped that she would put up more of a fight but he won out in the end. Maybe he had put too much force in that slap to silence her screams. No matter, he thought as he yanked the tank top over her head and exposed the cute bra underneath. He swallowed heavily. The size of her breasts was very nice and the breasts looked very supple too. He was sorely tempted to give them a squeeze. If he touched them, he knew he wouldn't be able to stop at just touching.

He was about too when he saw his victim shift slightly. Did she come to? Will she attempt to fight him off again?

Kotonoha shuffled slightly towards the left side as if she had trouble moving her body to face her attacker face to face. After he had slapped her, she was knocked to the right side as her head hit the wall with small thud.

The weird movement put her attacker slightly off though. She moved very slowly, with awkward motions like a puppet on multiple strings, almost like someone else was moving her or in control of her body.

It wasn't creepy enough to deter him from having his way with her though. He placed one of his hands underneath her chin and tilted her face towards him. He grinned. It made him feel so much more powerful when he let his victims see him ravishing them.

This was the point where he got to see the blatant fear in their eyes at how hopeless they were against him.

….

….

…

Nothing was there. Whatever fear he saw earlier was gone. There was nothing but a blank, empty stare. The gaze in his victim's eyes was hollow, lifeless and it gave him no satisfaction at all!

He wanted her to quiver in fear. He wanted her to plead, beg him even to let her go. She didn't even try!

Frustrated, yet still wanting to accomplish his task, he leaned in to place his lips on her bare body when he heard her say something. He paused ever so slightly. Was this when she would beg him?

He leaned closer to hear what she said.

"….fear…me…," said the girl who was pinned underneath him.

What?

All of a sudden he felt great pain between his legs. He mistakenly left his legs wide open for attack to his sensitive region and she took advantage of it by shoving her strong foot against it HARD.

"ARGHHHHH!"

He anguished as he doubled over from the pain and collapsed to the ground. He protectively covered his sore area in between his legs and huddled in a fetal position not moving from where he just fell. It was just too painful.

Kotonoha snickered to herself after hearing her attacker's pain. It was glorious! Just one move and the attacker became the victim. It wasn't enough though she thought to herself as she walked over to items spilled on the ground across from her. There was a splintered, old, wooden bat discarded against the wall almost hidden from her view. A makeshift weapon but enough to enact her revenge regardless.

The two companions of the injured rapist were guarding the alleyway, making sure no one bothered them while their leader had his fun before their turn. They crouched against the walls, keeping an eye out, feeling bored as hell when they heard his cry of pain.

Turning around quickly, they saw that he was on the ground while the girl was holding a painful looking bat. Their leader gave them the look to attack/grab her and they didn't need any more reason not to.

The two individuals looked silently to each other and nodded. They split up and rushed at the girl on both sides.

If Kotonoha was in her normal state, she might have panicked but right now she was strangely calm and furious at the same time. She held a weapon in her hand that she was not afraid to use and she wanted to inflict as much harm as she could on the individuals before her.

With the bat gripped fiercely in her two hands like how a person uses a sword in kendo, she swung widely and cut both individuals off from attacking at her sides at the same time. When they were forced to attack her individually, she ducked from their obvious motions to grab a hold of her, stepped back and swung the bat down against one of them who came forward towards her. She aimed for his head and brought it down. Even if she didn't have much power behind the strike a blow to the head was more than enough to cripple her opponent.

Her other opponent tried something different to avoid her attacks but because she was unpredictable, he was caught unaware and stricken down as well.

Where did all this strength come from?

Kotonoha had never taken any self-defense classes nor did she participate in sports. Her family wanted her to grow up like a modern lady so her extra-circular activities were monitored very carefully. However, her current situation had forced her into a corner which she felt compelled to fight and with her rationality temporarily pushed to the side, certain defensive "characteristics" of the human nature were brought forward. Adrenaline was also pumping through her bloodstream, fueling her instincts to fight.

Dark thoughts swirled inside her mind as she slowly walked over to the individual who was still huddling on the ground in a fetal position.

_Make him fear you._

_Make HIM pay!_

Her lips curved up in a small smirk. She started to snicker and then started to laugh a little bit.

The thrill, the feeling was exhilarating!

Is this why the oppressors continued to oppress their victims? The overwhelming sensation was addicting and she wanted more of it. She wanted to feel more! It was a rush that she had never felt before and she wanted to savor more of it.

Kotonoha couldn't contain her laughter anymore and it bubbled out of her. It sounded like an eerie cackle from a possessed individual. Her normal persona from school was temporarily casted aside as this unknown side of her took over.

She now stood right above the man who wanted to rape her earlier. The individual who DARED to strip her while struggled helplessly. The roles were now reversed and she wanted revenge!

With the bat raised high, positioned above the former attacker Kotonoha readied herself as she was about to strike.

Her former assailant looked into her eyes and saw her hollow gaze. It was slightly unnerving that this was the girl who seemed so helpless earlier. Did something in her mind break?

He didn't have time to contemplate it further as the raven haired beauty brought the bat down in one swift motion. He attempted to block the blow to his head with his good arm.

As an anguished cry came from his lips, he also heard a large snap in his arm. There was no doubt in his mind that something in his arm was broken.

His scream didn't deter her at all and she continued by aiming another strike on his body.

SMACK.

It was now his good leg and he screamed loudly again in pain.

The sound of him in pain jolted his buddies awake from where they laid on the ground a few feet away from him. They squinted their eyes and saw the girl strike down blow after blow relentlessly. She didn't seem to mind that her hands were getting bloody from holding the splintered bat in her hands so roughly.

_She's fucking insane!_ The two individuals shared the same thought as they watched from afar.

They had to save their leader from her. One of them wasn't that chivalrous though and bolted as soon as he saw the opportunity to do so. It wasn't worth his time to fight a crazy girl who had a weapon in her hands. The fun was over and the effort wasn't worth it.

**XXX**

_Where could she be?_ Makoto asked himself as he ran. He had double-checked on the places where he had walked home with Kotonoha weeks before. There was still no sign of her.

Did she go home already?

He decided that he should at least check out the train station where Kotonoha took her train to and from school. Maybe he could also ask if anyone saw a raven haired beauty board a train heading towards Haramihama.

When he approached the train station off from the side near an alleyway, a guy with piercings and some injuries ran into him.

Makoto attempted to apologize since the guy looked like he had been in fights before but he took off so quickly before he was able to do so. He thought his behavior was really odd. Was he afraid of something? He then looked back at the direction the guy came from and noticed long, black hair and a feminine silhouette.

Kotonoha?

He walked closer to get a better look and when he had a clear view; he dropped his school bag in shock.

He had found Kotonoha.

But that was not what shocked him.

It was the fact that she held a bloody bat poised over a fallen individual, proceeding to issue out another strike. She held it up high with two hands gripping it and her legs apart, preparing to put her force into it.

There was more. Another individual was down on the ground who seemed to be attacked by her as well but was now struggling to get up to help the other. A friend perhaps?

Makoto couldn't do anything but watch. The girl he couldn't take his eyes off of was definitely Kotonoha but what was with this sudden change? It was like she had become a violent person!

_It can't be her! Kotonoha… would never do this!_

Makoto clenched the sides of his head in turmoil, trying to deny the scene in front of him. Kotonoha couldn't do this! Kotonoha was gentle and kind!

Yet…. He couldn't deny what his eyes saw. The girl who he thought was his girlfriend was dishing out more blows to an individual who had tattoos covering his shoulders. She wouldn't stop. He could have been wrong but to his eyes, Kotonoha appeared to be enjoying what she was doing.

Makoto continued to stand rooted to the ground, unable to do anything. He wanted to call out to her. He wanted to confirm that the girl in front of him was not Kotonoha but someone else who looked just like her. But he was also afraid that she could really be Kotonoha.

What should he do if it really was Kotonoha? Stop her?

_What should I do…?_

Pained yells and blunt hits echoed around Makoto as he continued to stand where he was. He did not move an inch as he was conflicted with his thoughts.

_What should I do…?_

**XXX**

Ryuuji was running towards the train station that Kotonoha frequently used to get to school from home. He pushed himself to run faster even though his legs were obviously feeling the exertion. Sweat beaded at his forehead and he could feel his shirt underneath soak up with sweat.

_Why is it so far?_

His thoughts were interrupted as his cell phone violently vibrated in his pocket. He considered not answering it since he was more concerned about finding Kotonoha, but the caller id showed the Katsura's family home phone number.

He quickly flipped it opened and answered.

"Hello?"

"Ryuuji-niichan! Oneechan is not home yet! It's so late, where could she be? Could she have gotten lost?" Her small voice was laced with deep concern.

"Calm down Kokoro-chan. I'll find her, don't worry." Ryuuji replied, trying to sound calm but deep down he was just as worried.

"Okay…. Ryuuji-niichan. Please find her and bring her home! I'll be waiting!" Kokoro pleaded as the call ended as soon as he had answered it.

Click.

He was almost there. He hoped that his instincts were right and that he wasn't too late.

_I can do this!_

_Move!_

**XXX**

Makoto's eyes continued to be glued to the scene in front of him. It was so wrong yet he couldn't avert his eyes away.

What had happened to make her act like this? He thought she was a very gentle girl, the type that most guys would love to protect and shelter. It was part of the reason why he was attracted to her and why he had asked her out.

Yet, she was so violent now. Nothing at all like the girl he was first introduced to by his bothersome childhood friend.

It was all so wrong.

Very wrong.

Deep into his own thoughts, Makoto didn't notice Ryuuji as he walked past him breathily heavily from his exertion and observed the situation. He made a mental note of two things: one person was down and being pummeled relentlessly by Kotonoha and the other was injured but was staggering towards Kotonoha to help his friend.

Unsure of what that individual who was approaching Kotonoha might do, Ryuuji dashed forward into the situation and tossed his school bag off to the side, landing near Makoto's feet.

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!" He roared as he grabbed the injured individual and shook him violently.

His opponent was weakened from his activities earlier so he did not even bother struggling. However, he did plead Ryuuji to stop the girl from the beating his friend because he was couldn't do it alone. Slightly surprised at the request Ryuuji hesitated. However, with a sweeping glance of his surroundings, it did seem like Kotonoha was slightly out of control. He gave a curt nod.

He would at least try to get Kotonoha to stop beating the person on the ground. He released the individual he had grabbed and turned towards Kotonoha.

The state of her attire caused fury to bubble up from Ryuuji from within. It was obvious what these guys were trying to do her earlier. He was now sorely tempted to go back on his word on helping the unconscious guy out. But….he couldn't let Kotonoha stain her hands with the guilt of hurting people when she came to.

As he cautiously approached her, he attempted to reason with her as she continued to beat her victim. She seemed like she couldn't hear him as she continued to beat down on the unconscious individual whose shoulders were covered in tattoos. "Kotonoha, stop! You'll kill him!"

She continued to ignore him. Her face was contorted with glee as she stood firmly with her bat gripped in both hands. The rush of power was blocking out everything out: reason and compassion.

Ryuuji decided to get the bat out of her hands so he came up behind her and stopped her in mid-swing by grabbing one of her forearms. She struggled in his grasp but he held on and whispered to her gently.

"Kotonoha, you've done enough… he won't attack you anymore…" She stopped struggling but refused to let go of the wooden bat. He winced at the sight of her hands coated in blood from rubbing against the old bat. She was clutching it so fiercely that her hands bled. Ryuuji couldn't imagine the mental trauma she had just experienced when he wasn't here protecting her.

"Kotonoha… please… let go…. You've done enough… I won't let them hurt you anymore…." He continued to plead while holding her.

Kotonoha's eyes cleared up slowly as light returned to them. Her sight was no longer lifeless and hollow as she glanced at her surroundings and at the individual who stopped her.

"Ryuuji-kun?"

She lowered the weapon in her hands and dropped it abruptly with a thud. She then collapsed in Ryuuji's arms as soon as she did, the exhaustion finally catching up to her as her adrenaline wore off. He was now holding her up in an awkward position so he did what he could to move her then gave her a piggy-back.

The injured individual who had asked Ryuuji for help carried his friend away to the nearest hospital. When he attempted to spare another glance at Kotonoha, Ryuuji gave him a deadly look that caused him to avert his eyes. If Ryuuji didn't have his hands full with Kotonoha, he would have trashed them too. Slightly uncomfortable in Ryuuji's presence, the individual then murmured a quick "thanks" and left. It was obvious that he had bitten off more than he can chew based on what had happened to him and his friend.

Ryuuji scooted Kotonoha more comfortably on his back and walked back the way he came. He stopped in front of Makoto and asked for his bag.

Makoto simply nodded and carefully handed it over. Ryuuji gave a small nod in thanks and continued to walk past him.

Makoto somehow found his voice again.

"Wait!" He called out.

"What?" Ryuuji had no time for his antics.

"H-How could you just accept that?"

"What do you mean?"

"W-What you just saw! There is something wrong with her! How could she hurt them like that and enjoy it!"

"I don't blame her. She was only defending herself." Ryuuji countered in Kotonoha's defense.

"But still! She didn't look like she wanted to stop! She wanted to kill them!" Makoto continued to reason with Ryuuji, trying to convince Kotonoha's protector to see the way he saw things.

"So what! Are you going to abandon her now that you saw a different side of her? Is your love for her so weak?" Ryuuji lashed out, irritated at what Makoto was insinuating.

"I-I don't know anymore. She… just seemed so different… I-I don't know if I can see her as the same person anymore…" Makoto gripped his own bag in frustration.

"Then that's your problem. To me, Kotonoha is still the same. If she didn't defend herself, she would be in a much more worse state then she's currently in. Is that what you wanted to happen!"

"NO! That's not what I meant!"

"I see… so this is what you truly are like… you're too afraid to support her… to help her with her own problems…"

"NO! You're wrong!"

"ENOUGH!" Ryuuji winced at the sound of his own voice when he noticed that Kotonoha behind him was stirring awake.

"Enough… it doesn't matter to me at all. You can say what you want, you can convince yourself that this isn't Kotonoha… that the girl you held a crush on for the longest time is perfect and has no problems… but to me, she is still the same gentle girl. No matter what she goes through, no matter what she does, I WILL be there for her."

Makoto attempted to speak up again but Ryuuji interrupted him again.

"If you don't think you can be there for her, you should end it before you hurt her even more."

Ryuuji left with his last remaining words to Makoto who was now speechless. As soon as he left the alleyway, he reached into his pocket for his cell phone and pressed the number two speed dial.

"Hello?" Kei picked up from the other end.

"Kei, it's Ryuuji. I need a ride home. Could you come quickly? Kotonoha is injured."

"At once, Ryuuji-sama. I will be there in five minutes."

"Thanks."

Click.

**XXX**

"….you should end it before you hurt her even more…" Makoto was left alone where he just witnessed a violent side of Kotonoha thinking about the last words Ryuuji left him.

He was so confused and his feelings for Kotonoha were now impacted. He was now questioning himself if he ever loved Kotonoha that deeply. As a young man of sixteen, his hormones mostly did his decisions for him and he had difficulty distinguishing between lust and love. Did he really love Kotonoha? Or was it because he was attracted to Kotonoha's lithe figure?

…..

…

He wasn't sure. There was no doubt in his mind that he had a lot to think about but thinking wasn't really his strong point.

Shaking his head in mild frustration, the brown haired male trudged his way slowly home.

**XXX**

Kei was true to his word and Ryuuji's ride came no later than five minutes. Ryuuji gently placed Kotonoha in the car, making sure her head didn't bump into anything and entered the vehicle with her.

They had arrived at the Katsura house twenty minutes later.

Kokoro enthusiastically jerked the door open when she saw who it was and voiced out her usual greeting.

"Onee-chan! Ryuuji-niichan! Welcome home!" She then lowered her voice when she realized that her sister was not even awake.

She was held by Ryuuji's arms in bridle style in front of the door.

There were also dried red spots on her that Kokoro noticed as blood. It was a much darker shade of red that couldn't be easily replicated with crayons or any other coloring instrument. It was very different than the color her friends used to write comic books about the good guys hurting the bad guys. The injuries depicted in the drawings were always colored in red but it wasn't the same as real blood….

Ryuuji entered the doorway slowly, angling Kotonoha's body so they could both enter without bumping into anything.

Concerned, Kokoro leaped forward to look more closely at her unconscious sister and gently grasped her arm, showing her support for her. Her usual cheerful demeanor was replaced with an unhappy expression and her normal enthusiasm was gone in an instant.

Ryuuji allowed her to walk alongside him as he slowly shifted his grip with Kotonoha in his arms. He wanted to make sure that he held her properly since he was planning on bringing Kotonoha up to her room where she could rest.

Kei wordlessly excused himself from Ryuuji's presence as he left, closing the door of the house behind him. He had no doubt that at this moment, nothing else required Ryuuji's attention more than the woman he held gently and protectively in his arms. No words were exchanged between Ryuuji and Kokoro as he quietly ascended up the stairs to Kotonoha's room. Ryuuji was sure that if Kokoro really wanted to ask what had happened, she would. However, considering the state that her older sister was in, Ryuuji doubted that Kokoro should know. It would worry the little girl even further, knowing that her beloved older sister was caught in such a situation.

Kotonoha's hands were covered in dried blood from the bat she had previously held. Her state of attire also spoke volumes about what she had just gone through. She was not wearing her uniform and if Kokoro looked carefully enough, her sister had nothing above her waist on except for her bra. Ryuuji had lent his jacket to Kotonoha and helped her wear it while she was unconscious in his arms (he did have trouble trying not to look at her beautifully sculpted body though). Thankfully, his jacket was large enough to cover her up. He felt like he should protect her chastity. As for her tattered uniform, it couldn't be fixed and she needed a new one. His assistant, Kei was on it.

Kokoro could only guess that her sister was in trouble somehow. It was obvious through the injuries on the hand and the way her Ryuuji-niichan looked at her sister as he held her gently.

**XXX**

After Ryuuji placed Kotonoha down gently on her bed with the covers spread open, Kokoro couldn't hold off her silence any longer.

"….I-Is Onee-chan okay?" Her feeble voice tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to flow.

Aware of how she felt, Ryuuji caressed Kokoro's head in an attempt to comfort her.

"She'll be fine, don't you worry. She just had a rough day, but she'll pull through somehow…."

Ryuuji couldn't help but add, "….she's strong you know…"

In response, Kokoro couldn't help but express a small smile. "Of course! Onee-chan is the strongest!"

Kokoro continued to hover over her older sister as she watched her breathe slowly, wondering if her sister was having a nice dream or a nightmare. Ryuuji took this opportunity to leave for a moment to gather some medical supplies from the nearby medicine cabinet. The wounds from Kotonoha's hands might have closed already but they needed to be disinfected and attended to just in case. He didn't want to her to catch anything.

He came back several minutes later to see that Kokoro hadn't moved from where she already was. He walked closer and knelt next to Kotonoha's bed, placing the safety kit on a nearby small desk. Kokoro nodded as she shuffled to the side a bit, allowing Ryuuji more room to address her sister's wounds. Ryuuji then gently reached out and grabbed a hold of one of Kotonoha's arms, turning it over to reveal the underside of her hand. The bleeding had stopped as he expected but the wound was unclean; various pieces of debris were scattered all over it. Some were clearly small chips of wood from the bat and others were flecks of dirt brought on by the conflict. Ryuuji couldn't help but stare at the wounds with an intense focus.

_If only I had been there sooner…._

Would it have made a difference?

Maybe.

Either way, he couldn't help but blame himself for not being there. _So much for protecting her! I wasn't even there when she needed me!_

"…..Ryuuji-niichan… is something wrong? You're staring…." Kokoro had turned to face Ryuuji when she noticed that he didn't move at all.

"I-It's nothing. Sorry." Ryuuji shook his head and drew his attention back to the task at hand.

He grabbed a cotton swab, dipped it into some disinfecting alcohol and tried as gently as he could to dab it on Kotonoha's palm. As soon as he did, Kotonoha hissed in pain and stirred awake.

"Onee-chan! Are you awake!" Kokoro nearly leaped at the response her sister just gave, concerned about her sister's well-being.

Kotonoha was then quiet again. Disappointed, Kokoro couldn't help but frown. Ryuuji tried placating her again.

"Don't worry Kokoro. I'm sure she'll be awake soon. Her reaction was probably a reflex."

Kokoro simply nodded again. She just had to be patient.

After Ryuuji finished disinfecting Kotonoha's wounds and wrapped them loosely in sterilized bandages, he placed the bed covers back on and over Kotonoha's body. He wasn't sure if he should remove his jacket from her then help her put on her own clothes, but he thought it was better if he didn't. Ryuuji knew that Kotonoha was clearly uncomfortable being touched by males and he had somewhat crossed the line by carrying her back to her room and touching her hands.

Who knew how she would react if she woke up seeing him undress her?

Ryuuji decided to let Kotonoha continue to borrow his jacket. One issue was resolved when another presented itself.

It was getting late and Ryuuji's stomach growled in protest. He didn't remember the last time he had eaten because he was worried about Kotonoha ever since he saw her leave school in a hurry.

Ryuuji faked a cough to save himself from embarrassment, but Kokoro had heard it anyway and her eyes lit up in glee.

He got up from the floor and stretched his legs. He had knelt on the ground for so long while tending to Kotonoha's wounds that his legs ached.

"Come on Kokoro-chan, you're probably hungry too right? Let's give some time for Kotonoha to rest quietly while I make something to eat."

Kokoro almost hesitated as she looked back to her unconscious sister. It couldn't hurt to be away for a bit right?

She nodded and followed Ryuuji downstairs.

**XXX**

…..

…

..

In Kotonoha's unconsciousness, she imagined herself huddling to herself in pitch-black darkness. As far as she could see, there was nothing but herself. She was all alone and she preferred it that way.

This way she wouldn't attract unwanted attention.

No more perverts or bullying.

Would it really be that simple? She wasn't sure but the darkness was somewhat welcoming.

Then the background around her shifted and a scene started to surface…


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight: Practice

Why did the scene laid out before her look so strikingly familiar?

It had just occurred the same day.

There… an exact copy of her stood, holding a wooden bat so fiercely in two hands that blood was smeared upon them. Chuckling softly to herself with glee, the girl rushed forward and swung the bat against three other individuals, which Kotonoha noticed were male.

It was a movie that ran in slow motion and Kotonoha couldn't help but avert her eyes.

That didn't help block the sounds of the heavy blows inflicted on the three individuals. The loud smacking sounds of the bat smashing down and the anguish cries of the victims…

"I did this?" Kotonoha blurted out to no one in particular. It was her subconscious afterall.

Several more images flashed before her. She continued to see herself grinning, smiling even as she continued to bludgeon her enemies. She looked like she enjoyed it immensely.

"I had no choice! I was defending myself!"

Kotonoha clutched her arms to herself as she tried to justify the actions she committed earlier that day. She was all alone in the pitch black darkness, watching a movie on auto-play that wouldn't stop showing images to her.

Horribly alone until….

A small whispering voice appeared out of nowhere.

_Admit… it… didn't you secretly DESIRE to punish them? Those MEN deserved it! They dared to look at you like a possession as if you belonged to them… THEM! As if those filthy pigs deserved to lay their eyes on you…._

"No… I didn't mean…. to… it was an accident!" It was futile to fight against the lingering voice. It seemed to know her best even the ugly side of her personality that she hid all too well from society.

_Wasn't it fun? Those men cowering before you…. PLEADING with you to stop… Why didn't THEY stop when you wanted to?_

_Admit it… you ENJOYED it… Savored it…. It was an experience that you've never experienced before…_

"No….NO!"

With a violent jerk, Kotonoha shot up awake in her bed. Her breathing was rapid, irregular, and small beads of sweat glistened on her forehead. She attempted to calm herself as she surveyed her surroundings again. With everything that had happened today, the habit became almost a second nature.

She was home?

Safe and sound in her own bed?

How-? What-? Who-?

She looked around. Eyes darted left and right. Checking and double-checking. Yes, this was no doubt her room. She recognized her small stuffed animals sitting on her brown wooden desk with her computer chair right next to it. She also recognized her closet with a sliding body-sized mirror that she glanced herself in every day.

She then moved her hands slightly hidden under the covers unconsciously and winced in pain.

Kotonoha didn't remember injuring herself. Confused, she pulled her hands out and took a glance at them. They were wrapped in bandages and smelled slightly antiseptic. Whoever had taken care of her wounds made sure to disinfect them. She then took another look at her hands and noticed she was wearing something different… A jacket? She paused as she frowned. It felt really big on her too. Slightly unnerved at how she was wearing something different than what she went to school with, she continued to think, wracking her brain for what had happened in the day.

She stayed in her bed for awhile, trying to put the pieces back together. Before this, she was in school… and then…

Flashes of Makoto and Sekai ran through her mind. Of course, that was why she ran. She also left her bag at school too…

Then there were those men… she shivered slightly and clutched the covers closer to herself. _Did I really do that? I guess I really did…. Looking at these wounds on my hands…_

She really wanted to make herself disappear now. How could she have acted that way? She was always the good, obedient daughter. She never mistreated anyone! What had happened to the guy she injured?

Did she kill him?

She shivered again and hugged herself in silence.

**XXX**

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear him as Ryuuji knocked on her open door.

"Kotonoha? Are you okay?" Ryuuji gently asked her from the doorway, poking his head in.

"R-Ryuuji-kun?"

He nodded, relieved that she finally woke up.

"Did you bring me back?"

He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly as if it wasn't much.

"I see…Thank you…" It made sense why she was still currently wearing his jacket. _So Makoto-kun didn't chase after me… did he not care for me…?_

Kotonoha changed her position so that she was sitting up on the bed with her knees up hidden in the covers. She hugged her knees to herself unconsciously. It was obvious to Ryuuji that she had a lot of matters to deal with. Especially matters of the heart.

How could he get her to open herself up to him?

She was not herself today and she clearly regretted her actions from moments before. To Ryuuji, it was obvious that Kotonoha felt guilty; however, Kotonoha was quite good at bottling up feelings inside of her.

"Do…" Ryuuji stopped himself for a second. _Should I even ask? Would she even tell me?_

"Did you say something Ryuuji-kun?" She didn't look up at him even she answered. She continued to stay in her seated position, hugging her knees close to herself.

"Yeah… I was wondering if you wanted to talk about it? About what's bothering you, I mean?"

Ryuuji continued to stand at the entrance of Kotonoha's room, unsure if he should enter. Now that she was awake, he wasn't sure if she would be okay with it.

He had no problems with it earlier.

Why was he hesitating now?

Kotonoha tried to put up a false front. She shook her head slightly. "I-It's nothing…."

She could probably convince others, but Ryuuji did not buy it. He couldn't help but clench his teeth in frustration. Was he really that unworthy?

Why wouldn't she confide in him?

Why did she have to shoulder everything by herself?

Kotonoha looked up and noticed that Ryuuji still hadn't moved. _Why is he still here?_

This had nothing to do with him!

Her father might have entrusted her well-being to him but he had no business in her personal affairs!

Did he pity her? Was that it? Did he pity her because she appeared to be a fragile and delicate girl that needed protection?

_I can't believe I'm doing this again._ Kotonoha couldn't help but let these ugly thoughts roam her mind. It made her feel so wrong, like she was starting to become someone else that she couldn't relate to. Where did this side of her come from? How could she think like this?

She pinched her eyes shut, trying to dispel all of the poisonous thoughts lingering in her mind.

Seeing her struggle with herself, Ryuuji felt his heart bleed a little from a small wound. She was trying to bottle everything in, including her emotions when they were threatening to spill out of her. It wasn't good for her at all.

If she didn't let it out, the thoughts would eat up inside of her, poisoning her even potentially affecting her sanity.

She had to let it out on something, someone, anything! He couldn't let her keep those emotions bottled up anymore.

When Ryuuji opened his mouth again, his tone was anything but gentle. Kotonoha needed just a little push…

"Kotonoha… Are you an IDIOT!?" He startled her as he strode into her bedroom and stood at the side of her bed.

"R-Ryuuji-kun?" Kotonoha's eyes were wide open now.

She was so confused.

"That's what I said. An idiot! Who the hell runs off and ends up in alleyway, causing trouble for others!?"

Kotonoha tried to answer him in a calm matter. "W-what do you mean, causing trouble for others?"

"Uncaring for your own safety, causing Kokoro to worry for you and running into a den of wolves….." Ryuuji continued as he verbally attacked her.

To emphasize his point even further, Ryuuji attempted to sneer viciously.

"Unless, you actually wanted that attention… I thought better of you… Kotonoha K-a-t-s-u-r-a." He bit off her last name slowly then trailed off, shrugging his shoulders in indifference.

That was it. No matter what she had thought of him before, he had NO reason to talk that way about her!

The frustration was bubbling out of her and she shivered again, only this time, it was out of anger. Kotonoha's emotions finally erupted. She couldn't hold them back anymore and she lashed out in her defense.

"SHUT UP! You have no right to talk that way about me!" She yelled. It was only the tip of the iceberg.

"YOU weren't even there! How could you sympathize with me! Did you even know why I ran from school! YOU'RE THE IDIOT!"

Ryuuji just stood there as he continued to listen, not even attempting to defend himself against her verbal onslaught.

"I didn't want anything like this to happen! I didn't want THOSE men to give me any attention! It's always been like this! Ever since I hit puberty and my body matured!"

Kotonoha's voiced then rose again, letting her emotions take over. Her arms were flailing wildly to emphasize her point.

"I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS! YOU'RE A GUY! BOYS HAVE IT MUCH EASIER! YOU DON'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH SUCH PROBLEMS!"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW!?" Kotonoha choked back a sob as her emotions were now settling down.

"What do you know about me…?!" She fought back the tears that threatened to fall from the corner of her eyes.

After releasing most of her pent up frustration and anger, Kotonoha attempted to calm herself. Her chest was heaving with every breath she took. _I can't believe I yelled at him like that… and he just stood there and took it…_

Ryuuji smiled sadly to himself. _So that's how she felt since I left… That's how she was treated!?_

"…Doesn't it feel better to let it out?" Ryuuji then asked Kotonoha after she regained control of herself.

She didn't say anything. She had just put a hand over her mouth once she realized that her emotions had gotten a hold of her.

Kotonoha just timidly nodded in agreement.

Ryuuji just grinned. He knew that bottling up emotions wasn't good for you and he knew it from experience. Whenever he had something he needed to say out loud, he always had Kei nearby to listen to him. Since Kotonoha had no one else, he could at least be at her side to listen to her frustrations. He owed it to her.

She had finally let it out; under normal circumstances, she would have just kept her emotions bottled up inside. Even if it meant that they would do more harm than good. Kotonoha was raised to be proper, and now that she was older, there was no reason for her to let herself loose like that.

A child is allowed to express their sorrow and anger openly in front of others but once they get older, it does not seem right. Kotonoha felt the same. It just wasn't something she would do.

The atmosphere was now awkwardly silent between the two of them.

Kotonoha was now wondering about her clothes and decided it was a good time to bring it up. After asking, she noticed that Ryuuji was slightly uncomfortable answering. Curiosity compelling her, she peaked underneath the jacket she was wearing and noticed she had nothing on but her bra. With a gasp, she clutched herself protectively and sent an accusing glare at Ryuuji. Aware that she misunderstood his intentions, he explained that he had only good intentions and he did his best not to look on her naked body. He was a young man and it was hard NOT to look but he did somehow control himself. Kotonoha contemplated whether or not to believe him when she looked at her hands again. The handiwork from the bandages was definitely not from Kokoro. Kokoro was never good with wrapping bandages since she usually would be over-eager and end up over-wrapping, making the injured area much larger than it actually was with the extra wrappings. If she did the wrapping, her hand would most definitely look like giant mummy hands.

Slightly touched that the young man before her would treat her with such care, she decided to believe his words and let the matter drop. She also told him that she would return his jacket after she changed into her own clothes. Ryuuji nodded in thanks, it was what he expected anyway.

Another matter was settled and the atmosphere was awkward again.

…

Breaking the ice, Ryuuji spoke up. "So… are you hungry? I saved some dinner that I made earlier. Kokoro and I have already eaten but I'll bring it up here if you don't feel like going downstairs.

Kotonoha was about to admit that her current situation killed her appetite, when her stomach gurgled all of sudden.

Blushing, Kotonoha meekly nodded.

Laughing, Ryuuji grinned at her blushing face. "That settles it. I'll go get you something to eat!"

He then left her to her own thoughts as he left her presence.

_Geez… Ryuuji-kun…. He's so unpredictable…but he did help me….once again…_

Kotonoha thought that she might have finally found the answer to the question she had posed to herself a few days ago. What was her relationship to Ryuuji?

The most satisfying answer she could come up with as of now….

He was a friend.

Not just a friend but a very good one.

**XXX**

Kotonoha was terrified of going to school the next day. The thought of bumping into Makoto and Sekai made her nervous. She hesitated as she bent down to grab her extra school uniform. She could have made up an excuse to miss school but her pride as the class president compelled her otherwise. Even though she normally appeared weak and timid in front of others, she actually possessed a strong sense of duty to uphold her role.

Luckily for her, Ryuuji's assistant was able to get her another one so that she could go to school today. Her previous one was in shreds and she shuddered from her memory of yesterday's events. It relieved her tremendously when nothing further happened from having her clothes ripped off of her. She had read adult stories where female victims suffered worse and took time to recover from their mental and physical wounds.

She shook her head and went back to thinking about Makoto and Sekai.

What would she say if she saw them?

A slight knock on her door prevented her from answering that question.

When she opened the door, Ryuuji was there but she couldn't look at him in the face. Not after she blatantly yelled at him last night. Concerned, Ryuuji tilted his head to the side until he got a good look at her face. Meeting his eyes, Kotonoha's face heated up. She also quickly jerked her head to the opposite side, muttering a quick "we're going to be late for school" and briskly left Ryuuji where he was.

After a few hurried steps, she then came back to her room to grab something as if she had merely forgotten it, presented it to Ryuuji in a rush and left again. When Ryuuji looked down on his hands, he noticed that he was holding the school jacket he had lent to her just last night. He noticed that it was washed too although he couldn't figure out how she had time in the morning to do so. He also didn't have time to say thanks as she left in a hurry.

Wondering if he had did something wrong, Ryuuji paused to gather his thoughts as he put on his jacket. The Kotonoha this morning wasn't acting like her usual self, but then again, since he was male, he knew that she was still uncomfortable around him. There were times when he did wonder if she would ever get used to him but he had decided to not to expect anything. It was enough that he lived with her and stayed beside her. He kept telling himself that it was more than enough and that he should be happy.

But it was so adorable when Kotonoha blushed earlier when he tried to look at her face. Could it be that she was finally warming up to him?

Trying to quell down the expectations swelling in his heart, Ryuuji shook his head. He didn't want to expect anything more and it wasn't the right time anyways. Kotonoha had just recovered from her mental shock yesterday, and her well-being was much more important.

**XXX**

A small little surprise awaited Kotonoha as she approached her desk in the classroom. She had been so worried about confronting Makoto and Sekai that she had forgotten about the school bag she left the previous day.

Her precious school bag was sitting on top of her desk with a small note. Wondering who could have left it there, Kotonoha peeled off the small sticky piece of paper and glanced over the brief message.

It was written neatly and signed off with a name accompanied by a cartoon smiley face.

It was signed off by Sekai, apologizing for what had happened yesterday (which was a misunderstanding) and asking if they could still be friends.

Kotonoha felt horribly conflicted. A part of Kotonoha wanted to forgive her. To her it would be like admitting what had happened yesterday never really happened. Yet, a small glimpse of her hands could easily disprove that. The wounds on her hands had yet to recover but she replaced the bandages to be less noticeable. Even though Ryuuji had wrapped her hands pretty well last night, she didn't want to come to school with her hands looking like that. He would probably deny that fact and say that he wrapped her quite decently (it was still much better than Kokoro's) but she wanted to make it less obvious that she was injured. Plain bandages seemed more sensible than bulky anti-sterile wraps.

So she changed them a bit, but that couldn't dismiss the fact that she was still wounded.

But the black haired beauty of class 1-4 was still conflicted, she didn't know what to do. She was still hovering over her desk when Ryuuji stepped into the classroom.

He noticed that she couldn't keep her eyes from a small note that was just in her hand before she placed it back down on her desk. He approached her desk and curiously picked it up to read it. Kotonoha then quickly turned her attention to the person who picked up the note.

Ryuuji's eyes briefly scanned over the piece of paper. _That bitch thinks that they could still be friends after what happened!?_

Kotonoha wordlessly observed her new friend as he read it. She wasn't sure how he would react and she waited patiently next to him.

Then without any warning, Ryuuji tore it into two, then three and several more times. His eyes narrowed as the paper in his hands became smaller and smaller. He then released the pieces in his hand to the ground. It was obvious where his feelings were. He thought the note was completely bullshit.

"Ryuuji-kun!?" Kotonoha exclaimed with surprise. She wasn't aware that she now addressing him on a first name basis.

How could he just stomp on Saionji's feelings like that? He didn't even know her!

"Kotonoha don't worry about her. You're too good to be friends with her."

To his surprise, Kotonoha ignored him as she knelt on the ground and picked up the pieces.

Kneeling down as well, Ryuuji hissed. "What are you doing? That note is obviously full of false feelings! Let it stay on the ground where it belongs!"

When she continued to ignore him and pick up the pieces, Ryuuji roughly grabbed one of her hands to stop her.

He then saw Kotonoha wince in pain and let it go as quickly as he grabbed it.

"Sorry, Kotonoha. I didn't mean it." Kotonoha just nodded, accepting his apology as she proceeded to pick up the last few pieces of the shredded note.

How could he have forgotten? Kotonoha's hands were still injured. Ryuuji then tried convincing Kotonoha to see his point of view but she still continued to ignore him. Kotonoha didn't know why he was so distrusting of Saionji-san but she had no doubt in her mind that she was a dear friend to her.

Sekai was one of her friends. Well actually, her only friend so far. What had happened yesterday was clearly a misunderstanding. The traumatic event that happened afterwards had nothing to do with Sekai and Makoto. It was purely bad luck on Kotonoha's part that she stumbled upon guys who would attempt to rape her. Besides, it was because of Sekai that Kotonoha was able to become Makoto's boyfriend. She owed it to her.

Ryuuji wanted to try convincing her again but was interrupted when the teacher came in. Class was about to start. Sighing in frustration, Ryuuji got up from the ground and walked to his desk which was four seats behind her.

What could he say to convince her? Kotonoha clearly trusted that girl and there was nothing he could say otherwise. It was obvious that Sekai was one of the few friends that Kotonoha had and doubting her trustworthiness was like doubting Kotonoha's ability to make friends.

Kotonoha really was too kind and trusting.

Ryuuji was worried that she would fall to Sekai's schemes and get hurt. But what could he do but closely observe? It was a good thing that he was assigned to help Kotonoha with her duties as the class president. He could then keep a close watch on her with helping out as a pretense.

_I swear signing papers at my desk in the office is MUCH easier than sorting out relationships._ Ryuuji groaned to himself as he relaxed in his seat and pretended to listen to the lesson.

It was another boring subject that he had already taken. He propped up his textbook and utilized his phone behind it secretly, hoping the instructor wouldn't notice.

**XXX**

When the class was dismissed for lunch, Ryuuji approached Kotonoha again. She might think he buried himself into her personal matters too much, but he didn't care. He wanted to ask her if it was okay for him to join her for lunch. Politely, Kotonoha admitted that she was planning to eat lunch with Makoto and Sekai (Ryuuji grimaced) and that he was more than welcome to join them if he didn't mind additional company.

Hiding his displeasure at the mention of those two individuals, Ryuuji told her he didn't mind. Kotonoha just smiled and told him they were meeting up for lunch at the rooftop. She then left Ryuuji's presence to go on ahead while Ryuuji headed towards the cafeteria to grab some lunch. He had planned on making boxed lunches for both him and Kotonoha but he was distracted this morning. It was a good thing he didn't too because if he and Kotonoha brought the same looking lunch, people could misunderstand.

He didn't mind. Rumors were just rumors but he didn't want to make Kotonoha uncomfortable.

**XXX**

After grabbing some yakisoba bread and a carton of strawberry milk, plus a little bit of everything just in case Kotonoha was hungry as well, Ryuuji headed up towards the school rooftop which was supposedly still off-limits. He ignored the sign on the door though.

With his arms full of various food items, he still managed to open the door to the rooftop and slowly walked towards the benches where Makoto, Sekai and Kotonoha were sitting. With one glance at the three individuals, he wasn't surprise to see the set-up. On the same bench, Makoto was sitting next to Kotonoha as if nothing had happened yesterday with Sekai sitting next to Kotonoha. However, Makoto was fidgeting in his seat as if he had something to confess to Kotonoha but couldn't sum up the courage to do so. Sekai was cheerful as usual and brought up the topic of several video games that were coming up on the consoles that Makoto possessed. Kotonoha was left in the dark again, but made small talk by taking out a mid-sized thermos that supposedly held something within it. As he approached, he overheard that it contained a warm drink that Kotonoha made and wanted to share with Makoto, her boyfriend.

With ooohs and ahhs, Sekai couldn't help smiling as she nudged Makoto's arm and proclaimed how lucky he was to have Kotonoha as a girlfriend. Kotonoha graciously poured a small cup for Makoto first and asked him to have a taste.

"Wow, this is good. Did you make this Kotonoha?" Makoto admitted with enthusiasm as he took a sip.

Kotonoha nodded with a smile.

"Oooooh, let me try some." Sekai obnoxiously grabbed Makoto's cup and took a sip as well. She didn't seem to notice that what she just did could have been classified as an indirect kiss. Kotonoha was clearly uncomfortable at the intimacy the two shared.

Ryuuji took this opportunity to barge in.

"What the hell are you doing, Saionji-san? Kotonoha made that especially for Itou-kun and you're drinking it without permission?" The intimidation look he was going for was ineffective as he held several items in his arms.

"Wha-? How rude-" Sekai was ignored as Ryuuji dumped all his food packages on the bench behind them, grabbed one, opened it and started eating it. He couldn't care less about Sekai glaring at him with heated daggers in her eyes.

Kotonoha tried to be the peaceful mediator.

She smiled and tried to placate the both of them as one glared and another seemed ready to punch someone.

"Do not worry about it Ryuuji-kun, I made a lot. I do not mind if Saionji-san has some too. You could also have some if you'd like. It's a special type of tea I made." Kotonoha said as she flickered between the two of them, dividing her attention to act as the peaceful negotiator.

Pleased that she didn't forget about him, Ryuuji continued to eat in silence happily munching on his yakisoba bread. He wanted to reiterate the point that the reason he got angry was the fact that Sekai was too intimate with Makoto which irritated Kotonoha. But then if he brought that up, his feelings towards Kotonoha might make Kotonoha uncomfortable. Especially when she was now getting used to him or so he thought.

It was sort of rare these past few weeks for Kotonoha to eat lunch with Sekai and Makoto. The spring festival was rapidly approaching and since she was in a different class from the two of them, it was hard to make time to eat and socialize together. Makoto noticed this and brought it up, trying to make it sound as casual as possible.

"Hey Kotonoha, was there anything you had to prepare for the festival at lunch?"

Swallowing the last piece of his bread and taking a large gulp of his strawberry milk to wash it down, Ryuuji started to reply before Kotonoha had a chance to.

"What? She can't eat lunch with her boyfriend anymore because she's busy?" Makoto averted his eyes from Ryuuji, apparently fascinated by the clear sky.

Makoto nervously tried to shrug it off. "O-of course not, I am really happy that she can eat lunch with me."

"Obviously, otherwise, I would have thought that you had something going on with Saionji-san and was purposely avoiding Kotonoha with school activities as an excuse." Ryuuji retorted as he continued to attack his food with vigor.

Sekai laughed nervously at the implication. It was unnatural and came out as a forced laugh.

"That's really funny, Hyouma-kun. Makoto and I are just friends, nothing more and nothing less. Besides I could never imagine myself kissing him."

The moment Sekai finished that statement; Makoto had a brief flashback of that time when Sekai helped him confess to Kotonoha and took his first kiss as her reward. He stopped eating, placed a hand over his face and turned slightly pink. It had never come up and he had almost forgotten about that. Sekai brushed it off and never mentioned it so he had always thought it was a new teasing thing that Sekai came up with. He was now not that sure.

Makoto was never really familiar with the girls in his school but he was always comfortable speaking and joking around with Sekai. It was probably due to them being childhood friends but as he remembered the kiss and how soft her lips felt, he felt very confused. His raging teenager hormones weren't helping either.

Ryuuji scowled as he observed the two individuals. He felt like they were hiding something but he had no proof. Kotonoha was silently observing the situation while also attempting to come into the conversation among the rest of them at some point. She knew that she was still socially awkward when it came to conversing with others her own age, but she wanted to change to become a better girlfriend for Makoto.

When Sekai apologized to Kotonoha about the misunderstanding the day before in what looked like a sincere apology, Kotonoha was relieved and re-expressed her desire to continue being her friend. Touched by her kindness, Sekai grabbed both of Kotonoha's hands and pumped them up and down with enthusiasm.

Kotonoha modestly replied that it was nothing while the males on the side ate in silence.

_Seriously, this could be part of a tv drama of some sort._ Ryuuji restlessly sighed as he observed the relationship among Makoto, Sekai and Kotonoha.

He honestly hoped that whatever Sekai felt for Makoto would never be returned as long as Kotonoha believed that she was Makoto's girlfriend.

If he had to intervene, he would do so to protect Kotonoha's feelings.

**XXX**

Ever since the topic of "kissing" was brought up, Makoto couldn't stop thinking about the kiss Sekai planted on his lips after he adamantly confessed to Kotonoha. He only viewed Sekai as a friend until he realized how soft and warm her lips were when she kissed him. Now that he was seriously thinking about it, he also considered how "far" he had progressed with Kotonoha.

Makoto wordlessly sighed as he remembered how Kotonoha stopped him from kissing her on their second date. Girls were so strange. Ever since then, he hadn't tried kissing her.

Either way, he had to ask Sekai when they were alone what that kiss meant…

So here he was leaning on the small wire fence at the rooftop gazing out towards the city waiting for Sekai to show up after school had ended. Since they were in the same class, he passed a note to her stating that he wanted to talk to her about something. They decided to meet up at the rooftop where they could speak freely. It was their hang-out spot afterall.

He turned his head towards the only exit and entrance to the rooftop when he heard the sound of the door opening. Smiling at one of his closest friends, he greets her.

"Hey."

Sekai returns the favor just as cheerfully as she walks towards him.

"Hi to you too. What did you want to talk about?"

How did he want to start this? It was a bit awkward. Makoto slightly scratched his cheek with his finger and directed his gaze towards the ground.

"Uh…well…."

"Hmm? Well there's no point wasting time. Out with it." Sekai was direct like usual.

"….well… it's kinda about that kiss…." Makoto nervously places a hand behind his hair rubbing his hair as a nervous gesture.

Sekai then started to turn pink. It was then her turn to look at the ground and her nearby surroundings because she could not bear to look Makoto in the eye.

"…..ahahaha….. you still remember that?" She tried to laugh it off casually.

"It was hard to forget you know…"

Sekai then turned even redder. Her feelings for Makoto were slightly floating to the surface. _Does the fact that he still remembers means that he might have feelings for me?_

Makoto then surprised her by jerking his head up, looking at her with a serious expression and asking her bluntly.

"That kiss. What did it mean?"

Her heart skipped a beat while he looked at her face so seriously. She then laughed; a cheerful sound that broke the tense atmosphere immediately.

"Why are you laughing?" Makoto's confusion was completely written on his face.

"You look so serious. If you really want to know so badly, fine. I'll tell you." Sekai finished laughing and proceeded to answer him.

"It was just a joke I wanted to play on you. Did you think I was serious?" She acted like she wanted to stifle her laughter again in front of him. _I can't let him find out that I have feelings for him. _

"Jeez, don't do things like that. My heart can't take it." Makoto released the breath he was unconsciously holding and exhaled.

Sekai then turned around with her back facing him and addressed him on another matter in a casual tone. "Have you and Kotonoha kissed yet?"

With a large sigh, Makoto replied. "No, we haven't even held hands yet. Honestly, being with Kotonoha is kinda boring. I want to do more intimate things but she won't even try."

"Ohhhh, Makoto wants to do more?" Sekai continued to pry in a playful tone.

"Of course! All guys do!" Makoto pumped his fist in the air.

"Hmm…. Since you're the type to mess things up on the first try… how about I let you practice on me?" She casually offered.

"What?"

"Practice. I will let you practice kissing me. That way, when you get the chance to kiss Katsura-san, you won't screw up." She turned around again with a big smile on her face.

"Really? You will let me do that?" Makoto couldn't hide his enthusiasm.

"Sure, what are childhood friends for?"

"….then… can we practice right now?"

Sekai was slightly surprised that Makoto agreed to it so quickly when in fact, this could be counted as cheating on his girlfriend. However, she didn't care. It was a way for her to take what she wanted and not bind Makoto to a relationship. He was already in one and seemed happy with Kotonoha. She didn't want to ruin that.

"…sure…" She slowly approached him.

Makoto shifted closer towards Sekai as well. He gently placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her in towards him while aiming his lips towards hers. As their faces slowly merged together, they both slowly closed their eyes as lips met lips.

To Makoto, it felt no different from the first time. Soft, warm lips pressed against his own. The contact was moist like fresh snow. He didn't know how enjoyable kissing could be and he wanted more. He moved his hands around Sekai's back and pulled her in even closer, giving more pressure on his lips against hers.

Sekai gasped and mewled at more of the contact. Her heart raced and fluttered with each kiss.

He didn't feel her protest so he continued what he was doing. His arms held her tightly against his body as if he wanted to mold her into his body. His heart was racing and each kiss was deliciously addictive. Each kiss sent tingles down his spine and he felt his senses open up.

Sekai appeared to be enjoying the sensations as well and she kept up with him exchanging his kisses for hers.

After several moments of breathless silence, Sekai spoke up again while still in his arms and asked Makoto to go shopping with her. She assured him that it wasn't a date but a day to gather supplies for the activity they were hosting in the classroom. Makoto didn't mind and wordlessly agreed to go with her the upcoming weekend.

It did occur to Makoto that the weekend was a good opportunity to spend quality time with Kotonoha but he convinced himself that it was just for this time. Kotonoha wouldn't mind that he spends time with friends.

Right?


End file.
